Tag Archives: Houston

Precinct analysis: Mayoral race

Posted on November 11, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Precinct data arrived late on Friday, so you know what that means. I’ll be taking a look at all of the races this week. Let’s start with the main event, the Mayor’s race. Dist Drab Dick Cook Keryl Hall Parker … Continue reading →

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A lot of people wanted a piece of the Dome

Posted on November 10, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Unfortunately, most came away empty-handed. Wearing a floppy orange hat and an Astros baseball shirt, Dene Hofheinz grabbed a front-row seat for Saturday’s auction of iconic items from the domed stadium her father built more than four decades ago. She … Continue reading →

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Theories abound about why the Dome referendum failed

Posted on November 9, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

I have three things to say about this. University of Houston political scientist Brandon Rottinghaus said the outcome of both county bond propositions, as well as the Katy stadium, is indicative of resistance among conservative voters to big-ticket spending items … Continue reading →

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Ousted HCC Trustee Bruce Austin seeks recount

Posted on November 8, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

No surprise, but don’t hold out much hope. Longtime Houston Community College Board Trustee Bruce Austin on Wednesday said he will request a recount after narrowly losing his District 2 seat to his challenger in Tuesday’s election. Small business owner … Continue reading →

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What’s on the agenda for Mayor Parker in her third term

Posted on November 7, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Now that Mayor Parker has been safely re-elected, with a better-than-expected margin, what does she plan to do from here? A triumphant Parker on Tuesday lauded her “decisive” victory but quickly shifted her focus to the coming two years, listing … Continue reading →

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Why stealth campaigns can work

Posted on November 7, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s the Chron story about the HCC Trustee election results. See if you can spot what’s missing. A total of 13 candidates, including the four incumbents, vied for the five open seats on the nine-member board. Many ran on a … Continue reading →

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Election results: Houston

Posted on November 6, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Mayor Annise Parker easily won re-election, collecting over 57% of the vote in Harris County to beat Ben Hall by nearly thirty points, and far exceeding the expectations of most observers going into Election Day. I personally thought she had … Continue reading →

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Election Day today

Posted on November 5, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

For the however many of you that haven’t voted yet, here’s a message from County Clerk Stan Stanart: 4,500 Election Judges and Clerks are prepared to receive voters on Election Day, Tuesday, November 5, at the 775 locations throughout Harris … Continue reading →

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Early voting wrapup: Did we run out of early voters?

Posted on November 4, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Early voting is officially over, though a few more mail ballots will trickle in by tomorrow. Here are the final numbers, with the chart from Thursday being updated: 2013 2011 2009 2007 Here again is that look at turnout over … Continue reading →

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The HISD elections and Terry Grier

Posted on November 4, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron writes about the possible effect of the HISD Trustee elections on Superintendent Terry Grier and his agenda items like Apollo and revamped teacher evaluations. Of the three contested elections, the one that has the greatest potential to swing … Continue reading →

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We shouldn’t have any teams called the “Redskins”

Posted on November 3, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

What Steve Harvey says. It is time for the Lamar High School Redskins to change their nickname. It actually is past time. A good time would have been 15 years ago. According to a 1999 article in the Houston Press, … Continue reading →

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Response from Carroll Robinson

Posted on November 2, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

A few days ago, I noted that notorious gay-hater Dave Wilson was up to his usual tricks in the HCC 1 race, even though he himself was running in HCC 2. Wilson sent out an attack mailer against Zeph Capo … Continue reading →

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Want to buy a piece of the Dome?

Posted on November 1, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Now’s your chance, but act fast. Five hundred pairs of upper-deck “rainbow gut” seats and old Astrodome space helmets worn by the grounds crew nearly 50 years ago are among the items up for grabs Saturday during a sale and … Continue reading →

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EV Day 10: Two normally big days to go

Posted on October 31, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

We have completed ten days of early voting. Traditionally, the last two days are the big ones. Will we see the same this year? First, here are the comps: 2013 2011 2009 2007 Here’s a look at how turnout has … Continue reading →

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Dave Wilson is up to his usual tricks

Posted on October 30, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

As you know, Dave Wilson is running against incumbent HCC Trustee Bruce Austin in HCC District 2. I wasn’t sure at first if it was that Dave Wilson or not, but it unquestionably is. The fact that he’s running in … Continue reading →

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Ben Hall comes out against LGBT rights

Posted on October 29, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

I can honestly say I’m not surprised by this. Mayoral candidate Ben Hall spoke to KUHF this morning and (finally) spoke publicly regarding issues of equality for the LGBT community. Hall not only came out staunchly against introducing and implementing … Continue reading →

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EV Day 7 totals: Is this the 2008 of city elections for early voting?

Posted on October 28, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

One full week of early voting is in the books, and the fast pace has not let up. Here are the comps: 2013 2011 2009 2007 The seven-day totals for each: 2013 – 14,342 mail, 37,828 in person, 52,170 total … Continue reading →

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The cities versus the payday lenders

Posted on October 28, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

The Observer writes about representatives from Texas cities getting together to talk about how to fight the scourge of payday lenders. The conference panel on Thursday was an opportunity for city officials from around the state to share advice and … Continue reading →

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The next wave of curbside recycling

Posted on October 27, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

From last week, some good news for those of who that still don’t have the 96-gallon wheeled recycling bins. Houston will roll out its biweekly, automated curbside recycling service to 70,000 additional residences throughout the city just in time for … Continue reading →

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Bayou Greenways project moving along

Posted on October 27, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Work is underway, land is being acquired, and money is being raised. Now, the Houston Parks Board and its public partners hope to revive some of the city’s natural treasures through Bayou Greenways 2020, a 150-mile trail system that, once … Continue reading →

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Annise Parker is in your Internets

Posted on October 26, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

She’s in mine, anyway. I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but an awful lot of the websites I surf to now feature a familiar face looking back at me: Here’s another: Clearly, she’s seeking to dominate the liberal nerd humor … Continue reading →

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Mostly good news for Apollo

Posted on October 25, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

That’s the story so far. A three-year, multimillion-dollar experiment to improve 20 struggling HISD schools yielded big gains in math and limited progress in reading, according to partial results of a study released Wednesday. Now, Superintendent Terry Grier and the … Continue reading →

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No, Texans!

Posted on October 25, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

If you regularly see Metro buses around town, you might have noticed that during the football season they will sometimes display “GO TEXANS!” on their marquees, rotating with their route information. They display similar messages for other local teams during … Continue reading →

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EV Day 3 – Where the early votes are

Posted on October 24, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Three days into early voting and the numbers continue to be strong, with a third consecutive day of in-person totals topping 5,000. Here are all the daily totals: 2013 2011 2009 2007 Some people, like Campos, have been trying to … Continue reading →

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Interview with County Judge Ed Emmett

Posted on October 23, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

In addition to all of the races for local office and the nine constitutional amendments, there are two county referenda on the ballot this fall. One is the Astrodome proposition, with which I trust you are familiar. The other is … Continue reading →

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Chron profile of Ben Hall

Posted on October 23, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

As promised from last week. When Ben Hall left the city attorney’s office in December 1994 after three years as a confidante to and attack dog for Mayor Bob Lanier, observers assumed the ambitious 38-year-old’s path would lead back to … Continue reading →

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Interview with Kevin Hoffman

Posted on October 22, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

My second and final interview for HCC Trustee in District 1 and for candidates this cycle is with Kevin Hoffman. Hoffman has a diverse background, working in the energy industry after previously working non-profit theater companies as a department head. … Continue reading →

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First day EV totals

Posted on October 22, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

It was pretty brisk, with higher turnout than any of the previous three elections. Here are the relevant daily totals: 2013 2011 2009 2007 And here are the numbers for each for day one: Year In person By Mail Total … Continue reading →

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Chron overview of District I

Posted on October 22, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron covers the District I race. The contrasts in this eastside, heavily-Latino council district are dramatic: from the gleaming George R. Brown Convention Center in the heart of downtown, to older neighborhoods lacking modern street drainage where vacant lots … Continue reading →

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Interview with Zeph Capo

Posted on October 21, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Early voting starts today, and so this is my last week of presenting interviews. The last frontier is the HCC Board of Trustees, and I have two interviews, both in District 1 where scandal-marred incumbent Yolanda Navarro Flores faces two … Continue reading →

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Early voting starts today

Posted on October 21, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Today we arrive at the more action-oriented part of the election cycle, in which voting actually happens. Early voting starts today and runs through next Friday, November 1. Here’s the schedule and map of locations for Harris County. Check with … Continue reading →

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Third public meeting for I-45 widening

Posted on October 21, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

From the I-45 Coalition, via the inbox: TxDOT is starting to roll again on the I-45 project!   TxDOT has just scheduled the 3rd round of public meetings to be held Thursday, Nov 14 at Aldine Ninth Grade School, 10650 North … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: For the joint processing center

Posted on October 21, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

An easy call. [V]oters should consider themselves fortunate that they can easily cut $25 million in unnecessary spending from the city’s annual budget by voting for the Joint Processing Center on Election Day. The overlapping criminal justice duties of Houston … Continue reading →

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RIP, Bum Phillips

Posted on October 20, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

A sad day in Houston. Oail Andrew “Bum” Phillips Jr., who spent half his adult life as a football coach and every waking moment as the personification of all things Texan, died Friday at his ranch in Goliad. Phillips was … Continue reading →

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