Tag Archives: Mayor

We’re fixing to have some boring May elections

Posted on February 27, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

At least as far as Mayoral races go. The mayors of some of Texas’ largest cities are cruising toward reelection. The incumbents in San Antonio and Fort Worth face little opposition after the deadline to run for mayor in the … Continue reading →

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CM Gallegos enters the Mayor’s race

Posted on February 10, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

I wish him well. Councilmember Robert Gallegos, the lone Hispanic member of Houston’s City Council, has entered the mayoral race. Gallegos filed a form Thursday with the secretary’s office to start raising money for a mayoral bid, and he told the Chronicle … Continue reading →

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A very early thought about turnout in the 2023 Houston election

Posted on February 7, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Before I begin, please note that all of this involves a lot of back-of-the-envelope math and more than a few assumptions made along the way. The number of registered voters in Harris County, and thus in Houston, will certainly change … Continue reading →

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Pension reform had the desired effect

Posted on February 3, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

It’s a good thing Houston got this done when it did. We couldn’t get it done earlier, and I don’t think we could get it done now. Now, nearly six years after Mayor Sylvester Turner shepherded a package of reforms through the … Continue reading →

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January 2023 campaign finance reports: City of Houston

Posted on January 23, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

It’s late January, so you know what that means: It’s campaign finance report time again. The reports of the greatest interest will be for the city of Houston, but I’ll be checking in on HISD, HCC, and Harris County as … Continue reading →

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So how much money does Whitmire have available for his mayoral campaign?

Posted on January 18, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

It’s already a lot, and it could be a whole lot more. State Sen. John Whitmire is kicking off his mayoral campaign with a $10 million war chest, most of it drawn from the money he has amassed over decades … Continue reading →

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The Lege does its housekeeping

Posted on January 12, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

In the Senate, they drew their lots to see who would have to run again in 2024. It was the luck of the draw for Texas senators on Wednesday as they drew lots to decide which half of them would … Continue reading →

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Mayor Turner’s final year

Posted on January 3, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

The big local political story, besides whatever violence the Legislature commits to Houston and/or Harris County, will be the 2023 Mayor’s race. The incumbent still has a full year to go, though, and he has his plans for what he … Continue reading →

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Kirk Watson again elected Mayor of Austin

Posted on December 15, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Party like it’s 1997, y’all. In a tight race, Austin voters picked a familiar face Tuesday night to guide the capital city over the next two years as the region deals with skyrocketing housing costs and explosive growth. In a … Continue reading →

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LULAC files that lawsuit to end Houston City Council At Large districts

Posted on December 6, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

We’ve been waiting for this. The League of United Latin American Citizens on Monday filed its long-anticipated lawsuit against the city of Houston, seeking to get rid of at-large City Council seats that it says leave Hispanic residents with insufficient representation at City Hall. … Continue reading →

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Whitmire launches his Mayoral campaign

Posted on December 1, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

And we’re off. State Sen. John Whitmire formally launched his campaign for Houston mayor Tuesday evening with a fundraiser at the ritzy Post Oak Hotel, attended by dozens of the city’s political luminaries — including the hotel’s billionaire owner, Tilman … Continue reading →

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SCOTx hears firefighter pay parity arguments

Posted on November 30, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Lots at stake here. More than four years after Houston voters approved a measure that would grant firefighters equal pay with police officers, the legal battle to decide the referendum’s fate landed Tuesday in the hands of the Supreme Court of Texas. The … Continue reading →

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A too-early look at who’s running for Houston city offices in 2023

Posted on November 26, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Because it’s never not election season. With the midterm elections behind us, city election season is now heating up. Next November, Houston will elect a new mayor, a new controller and 16 City Council members. The campaigns actually got underway long before … Continue reading →

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Election 2022 miscellania: Marijuana, Austin Mayor, CRT

Posted on November 12, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Three items of interest for you. First up, several local initiatives to decriminalize marijuana were successful on Tuesday. By the end of Election Day, five Texas cities have voted to decriminalize low-level marijuana possession. After Austin voters overwhelmingly approved the … Continue reading →

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Mayor Turner’s cancer treatment

Posted on November 3, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

I’m very glad to hear he’s doing well. Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner revealed Wednesday that he was diagnosed with cancer this summer, for which he had surgery and received six weeks of radiation treatment. Turner said he went to the … Continue reading →

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On resign to run

Posted on August 9, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

The TL;dr version of this is “No one ever said the Elections Code was fair”. John Whitmire’s plans have been clear since November: He is running for re-election to the state Senate, and he also is running for mayor. If all … Continue reading →

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July 2022 campaign finance reports: City of Houston

Posted on July 27, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

We’re still more than a year out from the 2023 election, but we are now up to three serious conteners for Mayor, plus two others in the wild, so the finance reports are beginning to generate some real interest. The … Continue reading →

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Hollins and Edwards report big Mayoral fundraising numbers

Posted on July 15, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Yes, we’re going to need to start paying attention to this. Houston’s next mayoral election is not for another 18 months, but the early contenders already are raising heaps of cash. Former Harris County Clerk Chris Hollins has taken in more than … Continue reading →

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Amanda Edwards to run for Mayor

Posted on March 24, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

The field is now at three. Amanda Edwards, a former at-large member of Houston City Council and candidate for U.S. Senate, announced Wednesday she is running for mayor of Houston in 2023. Edwards’ return to politics comes two years after … Continue reading →

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January 2022 campaign finance reports: City of Houston

Posted on March 6, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

January finance reports are always worth a look, if only as a ritual to start the new year. We’re a year out from election season truly beginning for Houston, but as we now have two brand name contenders for Mayor … Continue reading →

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The hotly contested SD15 primary

Posted on February 27, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

This may be the most compelling primary race in the county. On the last day for candidates to file for the 2022 primary in Texas, things were looking good for state Sen. John Whitmire. The longtime Democrat, sitting on an … Continue reading →

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Chris Hollins to run for Mayor

Posted on February 8, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Wow. Chris Hollins, the former Harris County elections chief who pushed measures aimed at expanding ballot access during the November 2020 election, announced Monday that he’s running for Houston mayor in 2023. “The challenges that we’re facing as Houstonians are … Continue reading →

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Is it time to ditch At Large seats on Houston City Council?

Posted on January 26, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s one argument for it. The lack of Latinos on the City Council undermines the legitimacy of Houston’s government, experts say, and is something that a prominent Hispanic organization is pushing to change with a lawsuit and ballot proposition. The … Continue reading →

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Mayor Turner tests positive for COVID

Posted on December 19, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Get well soon. Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner announced Friday he has COVID 19, putting him among a rising number of infections as the omicron strain of the virus begins to sweep the country. “I was not feeling well overnight and … Continue reading →

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Sen. Whitmire will run for Mayor in 2023

Posted on November 19, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Big announcement. State Sen. John Whitmire, the longest serving member of the Texas Senate, told supporters at a campaign rally Wednesday that he intends to run for mayor of Houston in 2023. “I’m no longer considering it, we’re not asking … Continue reading →

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Chick-Fil-A and the “heartbeat” lawsuits

Posted on October 21, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

I’d forgotten all about this. A case that’s before the Texas Supreme Court this fall could have strong implications for the future of the state’s newly adopted abortion ban, the most prohibitive in the nation. The suit relates to a … Continue reading →

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The Housing and Community Development mess

Posted on September 26, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

A review of headlines from last week, which I did not have the brain space to do anything with: Turner fires Houston housing director who accused him of ‘charade’ bid process to benefit developer Turner names interim housing director in … Continue reading →

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Four House members to step down

Posted on September 24, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

In order of announcement… Rep. Scott Sanford. State Rep. Scott Sanford, a Republican from McKinney, announced Sunday he is not running for reelection, citing his family, especially his grandchildren. “As the legislature embarks on its third special session, I’m reminded … Continue reading →

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July 2021 campaign finance reports: City of Houston

Posted on August 2, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

PREVIOUSLY: Congress, Harris County As we know, this is not an election year for city of Houston offices. That usually makes for a pretty dull summary of finance reports, since it’s just incumbents and about half of them are term-limited … Continue reading →

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Appeals court overturns verdict in firefighter pay parity lawsuit

Posted on July 30, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Wow. An appeals court on Thursday reversed a ruling that declared Houston firefighters’ pay-parity measure unconstitutional, a major win for the fire union and one that could have far-reaching effects on city finances. The fire union won approval of a … Continue reading →

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We will have that charter election

Posted on July 7, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

For that thing I still don’t have a pithy name for. Someone form a PAC and throw me a bone here. A petition filed in April by a group seeking to give City Council members the ability to place items … Continue reading →

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More May election post-mortems

Posted on May 4, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

From the DMN: Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson bet the second half of his first term on these two council seats. Here’s how it looked after polls closed. Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson bet the second half of his first four-year term … Continue reading →

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Other May election results

Posted on May 3, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Roundup style, mostly. San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg easily wins a fourth term. Mayor Ron Nirenberg vanquished the ghost of repeat challenger Greg Brockhouse in Saturday’s City election and secured his third term in office with a win of historic … Continue reading →

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Charter amendment petitions are in

Posted on April 7, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

I need a simpler name for this thing, so that Future Me will have an easier time searching for relevant posts. Houston voters likely will get to decide in November whether City Council members should have the power to place … Continue reading →

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