Author Archives: Charles Kuffner

Anti-campus protest law blocked

Good. A federal judge in Austin has temporarily blocked key parts of Texas’ new law limiting expression on campuses, halting the University of Texas System’s enforcement of a ban on overnight expression and limits on speakers, amplified sounds and drums … Continue reading

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Punt!

That seems to be the Mayor’s plan for fixing our finances. Mayor John Whitmire and City Council members on Wednesday opted to keep Houston’s property tax rate flat as calls for more revenue reach an inflection point at City Hall. … Continue reading

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Endorsement watch: Cy-Fair ISD and the constitutional amendments

The Chron calls for sanity in Cy-Fair where its wingnut board members have been running wild. MAGA-on-MAGA mudslinging. Secret recordings. Anti-woke purges. We wish we were talking about the latest White House sideshow. Unfortunately, we’re talking about the board of trustees overseeing the … Continue reading

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UH/Hobby poll of CD18: Menefee 27, Edwards 23, Jones 15

I figured there’d be another poll of this race from them. Harris County Attorney Christian Menefee and former Houston City Council member Amanda Edwards are leading the crowded race to fill Texas’ 18 Congressional District seat, according to a new … Continue reading

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Paxton sues the guy attempting the Loving County takeover

Whatever. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton on Monday filed a lawsuit against the leader of a group of people that recently moved into a wealthy far West Texas county with the expressed intent to wrest political control from the current office holders. Paxton also … Continue reading

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Endorsement watch: Steady on at HCC

The Chron supports the incumbents for re-election to the HCC Board of Trustees. Fortunately, HCC’s fundamentals appear to be on the mend. Enrollment has nearly bounced back to pre-Covid levels thanks to booming suburban campuses. The board of trustees still has … Continue reading

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Interview with Jolanda Jones

We come to the end of the line of my interviews for this cycle. I’ll be back in the saddle soon enough for the 2026 primaries, but today we are finishing off the interviews for CD18. In a race with … Continue reading

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Rep. Gina Hinojosa officially enters the Governor’s race

Good. Texas Rep. Gina Hinojosa on Wednesday announced she is running for governor in 2026, setting up a potential clash between Republican Gov. Greg Abbott and one of the Legislature’s most strident critics of his school voucher program. “Our fight … Continue reading

Posted in Election 2026 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

There may be a lawsuit over the rainbow crosswalk

Good. A legion of Houston’s elected officials gathered at the Taft and Westheimer rainbow crosswalk Tuesday as a show of force against Gov. Greg Abbott’s call to remove it or risk the loss of state transportation funding, and some even … Continue reading

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Texas blog roundup for the week of October 12

The Texas Progressive Alliance stands with the people of Portland and Chicago as it brings you this week’s roundup.

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Interview with Christian Menefee

Our next candidate for CD18 is another familiar name and the first person to formally announce their candidacy for this seat. Christian Menefee has been elected twice as Harris County Attorney – he had to resign to run for CD18 … Continue reading

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Harris County sues over Solar For All funds

Good. Harris County Attorney Christian Menefee filed a lawsuit Monday contesting the Trump administration’s cancellation of more than $400 million in solar energy grants earmarked for Texas-based organizations. The federal funding, part of a $7 billion Biden-era program known as Solar for All, was meant … Continue reading

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Endorsement watch: For some change in HISD

The Chron makes their endorsements in the three contested HISD trustee races. It’s an odd election. It could even seem pointless. Right now, elected HISD trustees have little power, no vote and just a few minutes prioritized at the start … Continue reading

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Interview with Isaiah Martin

Next up for the special election in CD18 is Isaiah Martin, who like Amanda Edwards had filed to run in the 2024 primary while then-Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee was running for Houston Mayor, but then dropped out and endorsed Jackson … Continue reading

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Why is HPD calling ICE so much more often now?

We deserve some answers. Houston police officers have called federal immigration agents on civilians over 100 times since President Donald Trump took office in January — a jump of more than 1,000% from any of the previous five years, according to public records obtained … Continue reading

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A brief recap of the whole rainbow crosswalk situation

Let me see if I’ve got this right: Greg Abbott gets his knickers in a twist over the recently-repainted rainbow crosswalk on Westheimer at Taft, after having been spun up about it by some online wingnuts. These crosswalks are no … Continue reading

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Interview with Amanda Edwards

This week we will focus on the election we’ve been waiting for the longest, the special election in CD18 to fill the seat left vacant by the death of Rep. Sylvester Turner. There’s a big field for this race but … Continue reading

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30-day campaign finance reports: City Council At Large #4

We’re less than a month out from Election Day, and that means that the candidates in the special election for Houston City Council At Large #4 need to file 30 day finance reports. The July reports included reports from two … Continue reading

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More indictments in the Maria Rojas case

Paxton pushing paper. Eight people have been indicted on charges of practicing medicine without a license as part of the Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s investigation into a Houston-area midwife accused of providing illegal abortions, the attorney general’s office announced Wednesday. … Continue reading

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Weekend link dump for October 12

“One national survey of more than 1,800 higher education staff members conducted by consulting firm Tyton Partners earlier this year found that about 40% of administrators and 30% of instructions use generative AI daily or weekly — that’s up from … Continue reading

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The latest UH/Hobby poll has some red flags for Republicans

First, the headline stories, which don’t interest me much. Ken Paxton and John Cornyn are effectively tied in the Republican primary race for U.S. Senate, with 34% of voters backing Paxton and 33% supporting Cornyn. 22% support Wesley Hunt. Jasmine … Continue reading

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The latest Loving County shenanigans draws a response

Are we sure this isn’t all just performance art? Local, state and federal officials have called for separate inquiries a week after a Houston Chronicle investigation detailed how a group of people from out-of-state was moving to wrest political control of … Continue reading

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Dash for sale

Of interest. Houston Dynamo and Dash Owner Ted Segal is in “advanced talks” to sell the Dash for $120 million to the RHC Group, according to Sportico. The Dynamo and Dash declined to comment on the story to the Houston … Continue reading

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Three ridiculous voting and election stories

“Silly season” doesn’t begin to cover this stuff. Item 1: Paxton sides with Texas GOP, against secretary of state in lawsuit seeking to close primaries Last month, the Republican Party of Texas sued over a state law that allows anyone … Continue reading

Posted in Election 2026, Legal matters, Show Business for Ugly People | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Another Kerrville flooding lawsuit filed

I wish them luck. The family of a man killed in the July 4 floods in Central Texas has sued the RV park where he and his wife were staying, alleging the campground’s owners knowingly placed its guests in an … Continue reading

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Endorsement watch: Chron for Menefee in CD18

Special election endorsement #2 is in the books. Let’s get this out of the way: the 18th Congressional district is a storied district with a rich legacy of trailblazing Black Houston leaders from Barbara Jordan to Mickey Leland and Sheila … Continue reading

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Interview with Robbie McDonough

At the end of my HISD interview cycle, I noted that I had reached out to District V candidate Robbie McDonough but had not heard back from him. That happens sometimes, campaign-related email addresses are not always reliable. Well, McDonough … Continue reading

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Checking in on SD09

Our attention here in Houston is focused on the long-overdue special election in CD18, but it’s not the only special election of consequence on the ballot. One could argue that the special election in SD09, which was called to fill … Continue reading

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Endorsement watch: Chron goes with Jordan Thomas

The Chron makes their recommendation for the City Council At Large #4 special election. Voters should try to find someone among the current crop of candidates who has the vision and knowledge to actually make something productive out of a … Continue reading

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Interview with Al Lloyd

We wrap up our tour of the Houston City Council At Large #4 landscape today with Al Lloyd, who was one of the first candidates out of the gate when the seat became open. Lloyd is a Houston native and … Continue reading

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The recall effort is out there collecting signatures

Good luck, you’re gonna need it. After more than a year of posting to social media and reaching out to news media, Ethan Hale stood alone — aside from a Houston Public Media journalist — at the Houston City College … Continue reading

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HISD wants you to read its own coverage of itself

Oh, good lord. Houston ISD is looking to lessen its reliance on external news media and instead lean more on its own internal news team, according to the 2025-26 District Improvement Plan obtained by Chron. The shift comes amid mounting … Continue reading

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Texas blog roundup for the week of October 6

The Texas Progressive Alliance never shuts down as it brings you this week’s roundup.

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Interview with Dwight Boykins

Next up for Houston City Council At Large #4 is a familiar name, Dwight Boykins. That name is familiar because Boykins served two terms on City Council, in District D, having been elected in 2013 and 2015. The amended terms … Continue reading

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