Author Archives: Charles Kuffner

Dispatches from Dallas, October 25 edition

Posted on October 25, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

This is a weekly feature produced by my friend Ginger. Let us know what you think. This week, in news from Dallas-Fort Worth we have a lot of election news. No, more than that. Also: the Tarrant County jail; school … Continue reading →

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November 2024 early voting Day Two: On average

Posted on October 24, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Reading this story gave me an idea for how to talk about early voting so far compared to 2020. The first day of early voting for El Paso County’s general election drew 31% fewer voters than the record-setting 2020 race. … Continue reading →

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Hollins requests expansion of Whitmire’s investigation

Posted on October 24, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

I mean, it sure sounds reasonable. Controller Chris Hollins penned a letter Tuesday to the Office of the Inspector General and City Council Ethics Committee calling on Mayor John Whitmire’s State of the City address to be included in “pay to play” … Continue reading →

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Not so fast on Whitmire’s Montrose Boulevard revisions

Posted on October 24, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Nice. Probably fleeting, but still nice. After months of delays, the controversial redesign of Montrose Boulevard was still in limbo Monday night when a split vote at a contentious public meeting stalled the project yet again. The Whitmire administration favors a design that would … Continue reading →

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Texas blog roundup for the week of October 21

Posted on October 24, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

The Texas Progressive Alliance is going to be bugging you about whether you’ve voted yet for the next two weeks as it brings you this week’s roundup.

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November 2024 early voting Day One: Where are the mail ballots?

Posted on October 23, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

As I said yesterday, the Day One early voting report came in a little too late on Monday night for me to queue this up for Tuesday. It’s also the case that comparing this year to 2020 is not going … Continue reading →

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Where is Ann Harris Bennett?

Posted on October 23, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Not at the office. The elected official in charge of Harris County’s voter registration and tax collection appears to have been absent from her office for years, last swiping her ID to enter the county building in late 2020, county … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 13 Comments

Sugar Land partners with Swyft Cities

Posted on October 23, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

We may get some local gondola action in the near future. Look up in the sky, it’s a bird, it’s a plane, no, it’s a gondola? Or it will be if the city of Sugar Land can get a federal … Continue reading →

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Make that 18.6 million registered voters

Posted on October 22, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

That’s a lot. Texas added nearly 200,000 voters to its rolls in the two weeks before the deadline to register, according to state data, giving the state a record-breaking 18.6 million voters going into this year’s election. Since 2016, when … Continue reading →

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Greg Abbott cares more about his own power than about human life

Posted on October 22, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

What else can one say about this? Gov. Greg Abbott’s office condemned the actions of a bipartisan group of Texas legislators Monday, effectively breaking his silence in the pending execution of Robert Roberson. In an amicus brief filed by James … Continue reading →

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Fundraising for the HISD bond

Posted on October 22, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

I’ve been waiting for a story about the pro-bond campaign, and here one is. For Roland Garcia, voting in favor of Houston ISD’s proposed $4.4 billion bond is a no-brainer. Garcia, a grandparent of two students at Houston ISD’s Harvard … Continue reading →

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Interview with Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez

Posted on October 21, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

We wrap up Fall 2024 Interview Season with the best known person of the series, two-term Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez. You know his story – 18-year HPD veteran who eventually served as a homicide investigator, three-term Houston City Council … Continue reading →

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Judicial Q&A: Judge Elaine Palmer

Posted on October 21, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

(Note: As I have done in past elections, I am continuing the series of Q&As for judicial candidates in contested November elections. I am running these responses in the order that I receive them from the candidates. Much more information … Continue reading →

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Paxton sues doctor for providing gender affirming care to teens

Posted on October 21, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Nothing good will come of this. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has filed a lawsuit against a Dallas pediatrician, accusing her of violating state law by providing gender-transitioning treatments to at least 21 teenage patients. Thursday’s filing is Paxton’s first … Continue reading →

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Weekend link dump for October 20

Posted on October 20, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

“The Foreign Troll Farms Never Went Away”. I’m not sure I believe that no one wants to be in the new Harry Potter series because they don’t want to be associated with asshole transphobe JK Rowling, but I very much … Continue reading →

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October 2024 campaign finance reports – Senate and Congress

Posted on October 20, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

We’re about to get into early voting, so you don’t need much of a preamble here. Just one final check-in on the finance reports for our Senatorial and Congressional candidates. The July 2024 reports for both are here, the April … Continue reading →

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Early voting for the November 2024 election starts Monday

Posted on October 20, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: Harris County Clerk Teneshia Hudspeth has announced that early voting for the November 5 General and Special Elections begins Monday, October 21, and ends Friday, November 1. During the early voting period, Harris County voters may cast … Continue reading →

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Crowdsourcing HISD exit interviews

Posted on October 20, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

This is one of those cool ideas that falls in the bucket of “it would be so much better if it weren’t needed in the first place”. With little data available regarding why employees were quitting their jobs in the … Continue reading →

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UH-Hobby Center polls Harris County

Posted on October 19, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Pretty good. Could be better, but more or less in line with 2020 and current expectations. With the start of early voting just days away, a new poll shows Harris County Democrats leading their Republican opponents in countywide races. In … Continue reading →

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The 2027 Mayor’s race is officially underway

Posted on October 19, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

I think that’s the lens that one must use when looking at this. Mayor John Whitmire and City Controller Chris Hollins traded barbs in dueling press conferences Thursday, each alleging the other has conflicts of interest by providing special access … Continue reading →

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Once again with SCOTx and abortion

Posted on October 19, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

I’d like to think abortion will make a difference in the Supreme Court races, but it’s not so easy. Three Texas Supreme Court seats are up for grabs this November and, for the first time in a long time, Republican … Continue reading →

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Dispatches from Dallas, October 19 edition

Posted on October 19, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

This is a weekly feature produced by my friend Ginger. Let us know what you think. This week, in news from Dallas-Fort Worth we have several big topics: the Roberson execution that wasn’t; the HERO amendments, pro and con, and … Continue reading →

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Judicial Q&A: Justice Sarah Beth Landau

Posted on October 18, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

(Note: As I have done in past elections, I am continuing the series of Q&As for judicial candidates in contested November elections. I am running these responses in the order that I receive them from the candidates. Much more information … Continue reading →

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TEA clears Third Future Schools

Posted on October 18, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Some good news for Mike Miles. The Texas Education Agency’s investigation into alleged misuse of state funds concluded Third Future Schools — a Colorado-based charter school network founded by Houston ISD Superintendent Mike Miles — did not violate any Texas laws. The investigation also … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: Don’t Paxton the CCA

Posted on October 18, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

A good message. Before this year, even reasonably well-informed Texans didn’t know much about the state’s Court of Criminal Appeals. Then Attorney General Ken Paxton took a keen interest in ousting several of the court’s justices. Suddenly, many voters knew … Continue reading →

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Judicial Q&A: Judge Fredericka Phillips

Posted on October 17, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

(Note: As I have done in past elections, I am continuing the series of Q&As for judicial candidates in contested November elections. I am running these responses in the order that I receive them from the candidates. Much more information … Continue reading →

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Fifth Circuit pauses vote harvesting injunction

Posted on October 17, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Here they come to do what they do. A federal appeals court has temporarily reinstated portions of Texas’ 2021 voting law regulating ballot handling, ruling that a judge’s previous decision to strike certain rules came too close to the 2024 … Continue reading →

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The South Texas Congressional races

Posted on October 17, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Feels like I’ve heard less about them this year than in 2022, but as the story notes, the Dems are on offense this time. It’s déjà vu in South Texas. Texas’ two most competitive congressional races will feature rematches from … Continue reading →

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Texas blog roundup for the week of October 14

Posted on October 17, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

The thoughts and prayers of the Texas Progressive Alliance are with the people of Florida as we bring you this week’s roundup.

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Interview with Kristin Hook

Posted on October 16, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

I said on Monday that I had reached out to the campaign of Dr. Kristin Hook in CD21 for an interview but hadn’t heard back. As fortune would have it, I got a reply from her later that morning, and … Continue reading →

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UH-Hobby Center: Cruz 50, Allred 46

Posted on October 16, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Just checking in. The Texas Senate race remains close just a week out from early voting, with U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz up 4 percentage points over U.S. Rep. Colin Allred, according to a new statewide poll. The Hobby School of … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: The Chron gets on the “no trust, no bond” train

Posted on October 16, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Wow. The students of HISD shouldn’t have to worry if traces of lead are seeping into the water, past the district’s jerry-rigged mitigation efforts. Or whether a troubled individual with a semi-automatic can slip past a lack of fencing and … Continue reading →

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Judicial Q&A: Justice Meg Poissant

Posted on October 15, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

(Note: As I have done in past elections, I am continuing the series of Q&As for judicial candidates in contested November elections. I am running these responses in the order that I receive them from the candidates. Much more information … Continue reading →

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Paxton lawsuit against Travis County over voter registration returned to state court

Posted on October 15, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Is this even still germane? A federal court on Thursday returned a lawsuit to state court that Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton had filed against Travis County over an effort to register voters before the November election. The federal court … Continue reading →

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