Tag Archives: Election 2015

Interview with Eva Loredo

Posted on September 22, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Of all the downballot races in odd numbered years, HCC Trustee elections have the greatest disparity between their importance and the amount of attention paid to them. The farce of Dave Wilson getting elected in 2013 is the lesson we … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2015 | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Chron Mayoral profile: Bill King

Posted on September 22, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

This is the fifth in a series of profiles on the top candidates running for mayor in Houston. A fiscal conservative concerned with shoring up the city’s finances, [Bill] King would be Houston’s first Republican mayor in more than 30 … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2015 | Tagged , , , , , | 7 Comments

Endorsement watch: Seeing the big picture

Posted on September 22, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Looks like the Chron is going through the At Large races first, which means we’re up to At Large #2, and a repeat endorsement of David Robinson. You might as well pull out the popcorn when City Hall gets to … Continue reading →

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Interview with CM David Robinson

Posted on September 21, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

I know I said before that I was done with Council interviews, but you know what? It’s my blog, and my prerogative to change my mind. Honestly, I had always intended to schedule an interview with first term Council Member … Continue reading →

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We’re (about to be) Number 3!

Posted on September 21, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

In population. By the year 2025. Suck it, Chicago! Hidden in the haze of the petrochemical plants and beyond the seemingly endless traffic jams, a Texas city has grown so large that it is poised to pass Chicago as the … Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Endorsement watch: What needs to be said

Posted on September 21, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron’s endorsement of HERO is both the most obvious call they’ll make and a pleasant surprise in terms of how they did it. Let’s be frank: The organized opposition to Houston’s proposed equal rights ordinance is mendacious, deceitful and … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: Off to a good start, predictions-wise

Posted on September 20, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

First Chron endorsement of the season, and it’s one I called. When government is broken, who do you hire to fix it? For the Harris County Housing Authority, the answer was Tom McCasland. Plenty of candidates can tout their ideas … Continue reading →

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Business groups get into the HERO campaign

Posted on September 19, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Welcome to the table, fellas. Three major local business and hospitality groups are warning voters that the city’s economy could take a hit if Houston’s embattled equal rights ordinance is repealed in November, boosting supporters’ attempts to cast the law … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2015 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Interview with Juliet Stipeche

Posted on September 18, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

We wrap up our week of HISD candidate interviews with another incumbent. Juliet Stipeche is finishing up her first full term in District 8; she won a special election in 2010 to fill a vacancy left when then-Trustee Diana Davila … Continue reading →

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Interview with Ann McCoy

Posted on September 17, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

I have one more interview to bring you in HISD District 4, which is being vacated by Paula Harris. Today’s candidate is Dr. Ann McCoy, making her first run for elected office. Dr. McCoy serves as Director of Data Services … Continue reading →

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Interview with Jolanda Jones

Posted on September 16, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

We move on to District 4, which is being vacated by incumbent Paula Harris. I trust that Jolanda Jones is a familiar name to everyone reading this. Attorney, activist, former Alief Elsik and UH track star, Olympic trials qualifier, Survivor … Continue reading →

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Interview with Ramiro Fonseca

Posted on September 15, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

HISD Trustee District 3 is a rematch of one of the uglier elections from 2011. Ramiro Fonseca is back to challenge incumbent Manuel Rodriguez again. The College Success Coordinator for Project GRAD Houston, Fonseca has a long history of service. … Continue reading →

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A broader overview of the Mayor’s race

Posted on September 15, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

The TL;dr version of this is basically “meh, not much happening”. With a bevy of candidates and midyear fundraising that collectively topped $7 million, Houston’s 2015 mayoral race has been poised to be a blockbuster. Yet, just five weeks before … Continue reading →

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Chron Mayoral profile: Ben Hall

Posted on September 15, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

This is the fourth in a series of profiles on the top candidates running for mayor in Houston. His dedication to accomplish whatever he sets out to do – regardless of public reaction – has jumped out for friend and … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2015 | Tagged , , , , , , | 12 Comments

Interview with Rhonda Skillern-Jones

Posted on September 14, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

We move over to HISD Trustee races, which I’ll be running this week. There are four Trustee seats that are up for election this cycle, and I have interviews with a total of five candidates in them. First up is … Continue reading →

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Time to guess the Chronicle’s endorsements

Posted on September 13, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

We are a bit more than a month out from the start of early voting, and as such we are getting close to the start of Chronicle endorsement season. I know from doing candidate interviews that the Chron has been … Continue reading →

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What next for HISD?

Posted on September 12, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

The board ponders its options for Superintendent while they prepare to search for a successor to Dr. Terry Grier. The Houston Independent School District board is set to meet Tuesday morning to discuss the district’s next steps after Superintendent Terry … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Mayoral debate #1

Posted on September 12, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Who watched? In the first televised debate in the Houston mayor’s race, three of the candidates jockeying to replace Mayor Annise Parker took aim at former Harris County Sheriff Adrian Garcia and the agency’s allegedly low crime clearance rates. The … Continue reading →

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Grier to step down as HISD Superintendent

Posted on September 11, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

This was sudden. Houston ISD Superintendent Terry Grier announced Thursday that he is stepping down effective on March 1. Grier became superintendent of Houston in 2009, leading the nation’s seventh largest school district to win the Broad Prize for Urban … Continue reading →

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Yet another report on pensions

Posted on September 9, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Yippie. Some city leaders have spent years standing in the town square, hollering themselves hoarse that Houston’s financial footing is unstable, that huge pension costs threaten the city’s future ability to police the streets, pick up trash and maintain parks. … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 17 Comments

Chron Mayoral profile: Adrian Garcia

Posted on September 9, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s the third in a series of profiles on the top candidates running for mayor in Houston, in this case on Adrian Garcia. The youngest of six children born to poor Mexican immigrants could soon occupy the mayor’s office of … Continue reading →

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Three I-45 updates

Posted on September 8, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

From The Highwayman: Texas Transportation Commission members on Thursday approved a $3.6 million contract with Main Lane Industries, based in Houston, to replace the entrance ramp from Allen Parkway to southbound I-45. The ramp, which whips drivers through a steep … Continue reading →

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On the value of endorsements

Posted on September 8, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron asks what they’re good for. Houston mayoral candidate Sylvester Turner has the backing of the city’s three unions. Do you care? The C Club, a group of top conservative donors, supports former Kemah Mayor Bill King, and a … Continue reading →

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The local minimum wage fight

Posted on September 7, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Not quite on the radar here, but it could be. After years of failed proposals in the Texas Legislature to raise the minimum wage, organizers and advocates for higher hourly wages are going local. Leaders in two major Texas cities … Continue reading →

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2015 candidates’ voting history

Posted on September 3, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Regular commenter Mainstream took the time to investigate and document the recent voting history of the candidates on the 2015 city of Houston ballot. Here it is, for your perusal. A couple of caveats: Data is for Harris County, with … Continue reading →

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Interview with Philippe Nassif

Posted on September 2, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

We wrap up City Council interviews with At Large #5 challenger Philippe Nassif. Nassif is a first-generation American, the son of immigrants from Mexico and Lebanon. A founding member of New Leaders Council Houston and member of Leadership Houston, Nassif … Continue reading →

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Houston Unites’ first ad

Posted on September 2, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Not bad: The story: Supporters of Houston’s equal rights ordinance released their first official radio ad Friday, countering opponents’ claim that the law presents a public safety threat and seeking to reframe the debate before voters consider the issue in … Continue reading →

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The anti-HERO horde

Posted on September 1, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

There’s a lot of them out there, though many of them claim their mostly last-minute filings didn’t really have to do with HERO. Members of the anti-HERO campaign and other prominent conservative activists disputed suggestions of a widely-coordinated effort, saying … Continue reading →

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Chron Mayoral profile: Steve Costello

Posted on September 1, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s “the second in a series of profiles on the top candidates running for mayor in Houston”. It was July 2007, and Steve Costello, leading a crowded meeting of the region’s most influential engineers, had just silenced the room. “You … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2015 | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments

Interview with CM Jack Christie

Posted on August 31, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

We enter our final week of City Council interviews with a tour of the other contested At Large Council race, in At Large #5. CM Jack Christie is in his second term, having first been elected in a close-fought race … Continue reading →

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State asks for full Fifth Circuit review of voter ID ruling

Posted on August 31, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

As you’d expect them to do. Continuing to protect a voter identification law that courts say discriminates against Hispanics and African Americans, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has asked a full federal appeals court to hear his arguments about why … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Wilson denied by Supreme Court

Posted on August 30, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Some good news that came in late Friday. Anti-gay activist Dave Wilson’s attempt to amend City Charter and bar men “who perceive or express themselves as women” from entering women’s restrooms will likely not appear on the November ballot after … Continue reading →

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Special election set in HD118

Posted on August 29, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

I wonder what the record for special elections in a county in a single year is. Gov. Greg Abbott has scheduled Nov. 3 as the date for a special election to fill former state Rep. Jose Farias’ seat in the … Continue reading →

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Ballot order drawn

Posted on August 29, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Here is the official ballot order for City of Houston candidates this November, via Chron reporter Mike Morris on Twitter. You’re all familiar with my rant about ballot order by now – we have electronic voting machines, they should simply … Continue reading →

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