Tag Archives: Mayor

January campaign finance reports – Mayoral wannabes

Posted on January 19, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

I wrote yesterday about the start of the 2015 campaign season in Houston, and how it’s started a bit early thanks to the ruling in the lawsuit filed by Trebor Gordon that invalidated the blackout period. This week also marked … Continue reading →

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Feldman’s parting memo

Posted on January 18, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Outgoing City Attorney David Feldman shares his thoughts on the state of the city’s campaign finance rules as he makes his exit. City Hall began its attempt to use a federal court ruling declaring its own election rule unconstitutional to … Continue reading →

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And they’re off

Posted on January 17, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Gentlemen, start your fundraising engines. The Twitter handles have been rechristened, the first attacks have been fired and the “DONATE!” buttons have gone live. The yearlong slugfest for mayor of Houston has begun. In what is expected to be Houston’s … Continue reading →

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City does a 180 on campaign finances

Posted on January 14, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Not all losses in court are created equal. City officials will argue that the city’s election ordinance is unconstitutional as part of a strategy to strengthen their position in a lawsuit that could shape the early stages of this year’s … Continue reading →

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On playing small ball

Posted on January 13, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Campos reacts to Mayor Parker’s future statewide plans. And here again is my small ball take from a few weeks ago: It is time for small ball instead of the big inning. In baseball, small ball is a strategy where … Continue reading →

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Injunction granted against Houston fundraising blackout period

Posted on January 12, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

It’s a whole new ballgame out there. A federal judge on Friday temporarily blocked a law limiting when candidates in Houston municipal elections can raise money, prompting a scramble to contact donors sooner than campaigns had intended. The injunction, two … Continue reading →

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Mayor Parker keeps looking forward

Posted on January 8, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Always in motion is the future, at least for Mayor Parker. Mayor Annise Parker left open the idea on Sunday that she would endorse one of the dozen candidates positioning to possibly succeed her, though she said she hoped to … Continue reading →

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Tommy Adkisson joins SA Mayoral race

Posted on December 30, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

And then there were three major candidates. Bexar County Precinct 4 Commissioner Tommy Adkisson became the latest candidate to enter the 2015 San Antonio mayor’s race Sunday as he announced his bid to lead the Alamo City. […] His announcement … Continue reading →

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RIP, Bob Lanier

Posted on December 22, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Houston’s iconic Mayor of the 1990s has passed away. Bob Lanier, a 6-foot-4 cowboy boot-wearing, sports-crazy political sharpshooter who rose from modest beginnings in blue-collar Baytown to become one of Houston’s biggest developers and most influential mayors, died Saturday. He … Continue reading →

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Three thoughts on the state of the Mayor’s race

Posted on December 16, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Inspired by this story, which doesn’t name any potential additions to the ever-large field of Mayoral wannabes for 2015 but which does put some things in context. Most observers consider Rep. Sylvester Turner, with his support base from the African-American … Continue reading →

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Legislative special elections set

Posted on December 16, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Gear up quickly, here they come. Gov. Rick Perry on Monday afternoon set three special elections for Jan. 6, including the race to replace state Sen. Leticia Van de Putte, D-San Antonio. Van de Putte, who lost her bid for … Continue reading →

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San Antonio special legislative elections appear to be set

Posted on December 14, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Rumor has it. State Rep. Mike Villarreal said Friday that Gov. Rick Perry has set Jan. 6 as the date for a special election to fill his position in the state House and a Senate seat being vacated by Leticia … Continue reading →

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Dallas City Council approves vehicles for hire revisions

Posted on December 11, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

It was smooth sailing, relatively speaking. Starting in late April, ride-share companies like Uber and Lyft will be able to operate legally in the city of Dallas. The City Council on Wednesday voted 13-2 to overhaul the city’s ordinance for … Continue reading →

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Will the TNCs leave San Antonio?

Posted on December 10, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

The upcoming Council vote in San Antonio over vehicles for hire could have some repercussions. City Council will meet Thursday to vote on proposed rules that would allow rideshare companies like Lyft and Uber to operate legally in San Antonio. … Continue reading →

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Bexar legislative shuffle update

Posted on December 5, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

The two candidates that we thought were running for HD123 have officially announced that they are running for HD123. Two Democrats announced this weekend that they’re running for Texas House District 123, the San Antonio seat that state Rep. Mike … Continue reading →

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Bill King to run for Mayor

Posted on November 29, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Because there aren’t enough candidates for Mayor already. Bill King is inching toward a run for mayor of Houston as the field in next year’s open-seat election continues to grow. King, an attorney and the former mayor of Kemah, designated … Continue reading →

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Bell fundraising lawsuit to be heard in January

Posted on November 28, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

A busy legal calendar just got a little fuller. A judge in January will hear likely mayoral candidate Chris Bell’s request to block Sylvester Turner’s plan to transfer money from his officeholder account to his mayoral account when the fundraising … Continue reading →

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And the dominoes do begin to fall

Posted on November 22, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Game on. A calf scramble for legislative seats set off by two lawmakers’ decisions to run for San Antonio mayor could produce a rare shakeup in the Bexar County delegation that reports for duty in Austin on Jan. 13. As … Continue reading →

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Van de Putte to run for Mayor of San Antonio

Posted on November 20, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Wow. Ending weeks of speculation, state Sen. Leticia Van de Putte said Wednesday she is running for mayor of San Antonio. Just two weeks after a crushing defeat in the lieutenant governor ‘s race, Van de Putte — who is … Continue reading →

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Bell ordered to pay $300K to RGA

Posted on November 19, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Ouch. Unsuccessful 2006 Democratic gubernatorial candidate Chris Bell, once awarded $2 million in his lawsuit against the Republican Governors Association, has instead been ordered to pay the organization $300,000 in legal fees after losing on appeal. The case dates to … Continue reading →

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Diego Bernal to run for HD123

Posted on November 17, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Good. Diego Bernal, a civil rights attorney elected to the District 1 City Council seat in 2011, will leave the office on Tuesday to run in a yet-to-be-called special election for the Texas House of Representatives. “I’m stepping down,” Bernal … Continue reading →

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Ben Hall 2.0

Posted on November 13, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Oh, hell no. Ben Hall, the lawyer who lost to Mayor Annise Parker in 2013, will run for mayor again in 2015, he told the Chronicle on Wednesday. Hall will announce his candidacy in a radio advertisement that will begin … Continue reading →

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What will The Dew do now?

Posted on November 12, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

“Go away” would be my first choice. David Dewhurst is not ready to leave Texas politics. The outgoing lieutenant governor said Monday he is planning to start a “large public policy venture” and may consider a run for political office … Continue reading →

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If there are dominoes to fall…

Posted on November 11, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

…these two would like to be among them. Election season may not be over just yet in San Antonio, where a game of legislative musical chairs could begin if state Sen. Leticia Van de Putte launches a bid for mayor. … Continue reading →

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Villarreal to launch his mayoral candidacy

Posted on November 10, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

We’re going to be talking a lot about Houston’s mayoral race next year, but six months before we elect a new Mayor San Antonio will elect one as well. The current frontrunner – and only declared candidate so far – … Continue reading →

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Lawsuit filed over Houston campaign blackout rules

Posted on November 9, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: Late Tuesday afternoon, Houston City Council candidate Trebor Gordon filed a First Amendment lawsuit challenging a discriminatory Houston ordinance that prevents city candidates from fundraising until February. Gordon is a conservative candidate for Houston City Council at … Continue reading →

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First impressions of the 2014 results

Posted on November 6, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

My initial thoughts, for what they are worth. – Let me begin by saying that for all the criticism I had of the UT/Texas Trib’s polling and the skepticism of Internet-sample methodology, they were fairly accurate in the end. In … Continue reading →

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KHOU: Abbott 47, Davis 32

Posted on October 21, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

A new poll to open Early Voting. As early voters head to the polls for a landmark election in Texas, a new survey conducted for KHOU-TV and Houston Public Media shows Republican Greg Abbott with a commanding lead over Democrat … Continue reading →

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Mayoral fundraising 2015

Posted on October 20, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Yeah, I know, another post about the 2015 election. I sure am doing a lousy job of not thinking about that just yet, but this raises an interesting point. Likely mayoral candidate Chris Bell is asking the city of Houston … Continue reading →

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Chartering

Posted on October 13, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

There will be more than just the Mayor’s race going on in 2015. Houston is guaranteed a frantic 2015 political season with an open mayor’s race on the ballot, but it could get busier still with growing talk of placing … Continue reading →

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And we’re still talking about the 2015 Mayor’s race

Posted on September 30, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Here we go again. The mayor’s race may be more than a year away, but nearly all candidates have launched shadow campaigns – and not all shadow campaigns are created equal. [State Rep. Sylvester] Turner and Harris County Sheriff Adrian … Continue reading →

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Empower Texans to spread its virus to Houston

Posted on September 22, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Try not to get infected. Empower Texans said Sunday it will open a political outpost in Houston, a signal that the conservative political action committee may emerge as a player in upcoming municipal elections. […] On Friday, Empower’s fiscal policy … Continue reading →

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Davis’ internal poll

Posted on September 12, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

I had been wondering if Wendy Davis was going to release one of these. Democratic gubernatorial nominee Wendy Davis is trailing Republican opponent Greg Abbott by single digits for the first time this year in her campaign’s internal polling, according … Continue reading →

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Do we really have to talk about the 2015 Mayoral race right now?

Posted on August 5, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

sigh All right, all right, if you insist. But let’s make it quick. The list of possible candidates thus far includes mainly those who have held or sought public office before, though analysts said the guessing game at this point … Continue reading →

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