Tag Archives: Harris County Attorney

And now we have a judicial loser contesting the election

Posted on December 9, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

The Republicans did warn us they’d be sore losers. Republican judicial candidate Erin Lunceford filed a petition Wednesday seeking a new election in Harris County’s 189th judicial district court race after losing by 2,743 votes out of more than 1 … Continue reading →

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SCOTx allows provisional votes to be counted

Posted on November 23, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Good. The Texas Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that Harris County can include about 2,100 ballots cast during an extra hour of Election Day voting when officials certify the midterm results. But the state’s highest civil court also ordered Harris County … Continue reading →

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Paxton sues to prevent some provisional votes from being counted

Posted on November 22, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

On brand. Always, always on brand. The Texas Attorney General’s office is attempting a last-minute intervention to toss out 2,000 provisional ballots before a Harris County Commissioners Court meeting Tuesday to certify the November election. The ballots in question were … Continue reading →

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At least one local voter purge effort has been thwarted

Posted on October 4, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

For now, at least. Like flies to garbage, though, you know they’ll be back for more. The Harris County Elections Administrator’s Office received a flood of affidavits this summer challenging the eligibility of thousands of registered voters throughout the county, … Continue reading →

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Republican Commissioners abscond again

Posted on September 29, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Cowards. Republicans Tom Ramsey of Precinct 3 and Jack Cagle of Precinct 4 skipped Tuesday’s Commissioners Court meeting as part of an ongoing battle of political wills that could extend until the deadline for approving a tax rate passes at … Continue reading →

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Paxton issues deranged opinion on access to ballots

Posted on August 26, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

This is utterly chaotic. And completely out of the blue. A legal opinion released by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton last week will almost certainly throw county elections offices into chaos after November, experts say, exposing election clerks to possible … Continue reading →

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New bail bond rule survives again

Posted on August 18, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

On to the appeals. A judge rejected a second attempt by a bail bonding business to put an end to a Harris County rule requiring defendants accused of violent offenses to pay a minimum 10 percent fee to secure their release from jail, officials said … Continue reading →

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EPA to investigate TCEQ over concrete plant permits

Posted on August 11, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Well, this ought to be interesting. The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality is the subject of an investigation by the Environmental Protection Agency following complaints that the state agency violated civil rights laws in its permitting of concrete batch plants. … Continue reading →

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If the only choices are “take it or leave it”, well…

Posted on July 30, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Leave it doesn’t sound so bad given the alternative. One year ago, opponents of the state’s plan to rebuild Interstate 45 in Houston criticized the “take it or leave it” option state officials offered regarding amending plans for the mega-project. Tuesday, as … Continue reading →

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The continued Republican threat to voting

Posted on July 5, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

They cannot be satisfied. Not satisfied with the new voting restrictions put in place less than a year ago, the Texas Republican Party is plowing ahead with yet new measures that would reduce the number of early voting days and … Continue reading →

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Harris County GOP drops its lawsuit over election night vote dropoffs

Posted on June 18, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

It wasn’t getting anywhere, anyway. The Harris County GOP on Friday dropped its lawsuit, filed on the day of last month’s primary runoff election, challenging the county’s plan for counting ballots. Local Republican party officials argued the county’s ballot transport protocol violated … Continue reading →

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The election night experience

Posted on May 25, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Let me start off by saying that my heart breaks for everyone in Uvalde. I cannot begin to fathom the pain and loss they are experiencing. I don’t know when we as a society will act to protect people from … Continue reading →

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SCOTx ponders the questions the Fifth Circuit asked it about SB1

Posted on May 15, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Seems like there’s not that much in dispute, but there’s always something. Texas Supreme Court justices questioned during oral argument if they should answer certified questions from a federal appeals court about challenges to an election law that created penalties … Continue reading →

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New bail bond rules survive initial court challenge

Posted on April 24, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

There are a couple of stories all rolled into this, so my apologies for any confusion. A ruling by a Harris County judge Friday will allow a recently-approved policy requiring bail bond agents to charge some defendants a 10 percent … Continue reading →

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State wants feds to un-pause I-45

Posted on April 5, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

We all want things. State highway officials held fast to their plans for rebuilding Interstate 45 in Houston on Thursday, offering a litany of benefits the project will bring and pressing federal officials to lift a 12-month-and-counting pause on development. … Continue reading →

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Fifth Circuit asks SCOTx for help on some SB1 issues

Posted on March 25, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

The Twitter summary: . Here are the questions the 5th Circuit asked the Texas Supremes to answer: https://ca5.uscourts.gov/opinions/unpub/22/22-50110.0.pdf — Chuck Lindell (@chucklindell) 2:45 PM – 23 March 2022 To recap the history here, back in September a group of plaintiffs … Continue reading →

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Of course the Fifth Circuit put a hold on the SB1 injunction

Posted on February 19, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

There is nothing more reliable in this world than the Fifth Circuit giving Republicans everything they ask for. The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has put a temporary hold on a preliminary injunction that had blocked enforcement of a … Continue reading →

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Injunction granted in lawsuit over criminal penalties for election officials who encourage voting by mail

Posted on February 13, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

That’s a somewhat complicated headline for this. A new Texas law that keeps local election officials from encouraging voters to request mail-in ballots likely violates the First Amendment, a federal judge ruled late Friday. Following a testy three-hour hearing earlier … Continue reading →

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Ken Paxton cannot be trusted to prosecute anyone

Posted on February 9, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Scary story: . From Statesman columnist @bgrumet: “@TXAG Ken Paxton is using the powers of his office to treat a good-faith mishap as a crime, after coming under political pressure from his own base to file charges.” — Austin Statesman … Continue reading →

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Preliminary injunction sought against mail ballot restrictions

Posted on December 29, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Of interest. Today in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas, the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU Law, Weil, Gotshal & Manges, and the Harris County Attorney’s Office moved for a preliminary injunction in Longoria v. Paxton, their challenge … Continue reading →

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Some I-45 work to resume

Posted on December 3, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Just some design work, for now. Federal officials have lifted their pause on a small piece of the planned Interstate 45 mega-project that will remake downtown Houston’s freeway system and has divided state transportation planners, community groups and local politicians. … Continue reading →

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Harris County to pause the I-45 lawsuit

Posted on November 16, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Gonna give talking a try. You never know. Harris County will pause its lawsuit against the Texas Department of Transportation over the proposed Interstate 45 widening in hopes that it leads to a consensus that has eluded them for more … Continue reading →

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Harris County sues Abbott and issues a mask mandate

Posted on August 13, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Quite the busy day yesterday. Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo on Thursday issued a mandatory mask order for Harris County schools and daycares, joining the chorus of elected officials in the Texas’ larges cities in defying Gov. Greg Abbott’s order … Continue reading →

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Dallas ISD to require masks

Posted on August 10, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Good for them. Starting Tuesday, Dallas ISD will require students and teachers to wear masks at its campuses, defying Gov. Greg Abbott’s order that bars districts from issuing mask mandates. Superintendent Michael Hinojosa announced the change during a Monday morning … Continue reading →

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Again with the existential Constable question

Posted on July 3, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s a long and detailed story in the Chron about the history and purpose of the Constable office in Harris County, where they are bigger and do more than anywhere else in the state. The lawsuit’s allegations were stunning: Harris … Continue reading →

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Harris County Attorney sues Juul

Posted on April 8, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: Harris County Attorney Christian D. Menefee filed a lawsuit Thursday in California state court against e-cigarette company JUUL and several of its executives. Harris County is the first governmental entity in Texas to join the nationwide fight … Continue reading →

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Harris County sues TxDOT over I-45

Posted on March 13, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

This ought to be interesting. Plans to rebuild Interstate 45 in Houston, which state officials say need to move forward as they work through concerns expressed by critics, took what could be a lengthy detour into federal court Thursday. In … Continue reading →

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Harris County considers its ERCOT responses

Posted on February 25, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Maybe ERCOT isn’t right for us. Harris County should consider leaving the state’s main power grid after it failed to prevent widespread blackouts for more than half of Houston-area residents last week, Precinct 2 Commissioner Adrian Garcia said Monday. Garcia … Continue reading →

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A different focus on human trafficking

Posted on February 5, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

This story might have slipped past you last week. Harris County Attorney Christian Menefee — who was elected on a promise to transform the region’s approach to criminal justice — removed 36 suspected sex workers Thursday from a proposed injunction … Continue reading →

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Precinct analysis: County Attorney 2020 and 2016

Posted on January 5, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Introduction Congressional districts State Rep districts Commissioners Court/JP precincts Comparing 2012 and 2016 Statewide judicial Other jurisdictions Appellate courts, Part 1 Appellate courts, Part 2 Judicial averages Other cities District Attorney The office of County Attorney gets less attention than … Continue reading →

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Do we still have to worry about the Elections Administrator’s office?

Posted on December 31, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

I’m a little hesitant to bring this up, but… This year, Harris County began the process of consolidating the two offices that have historically handled elections — the county clerk and the tax assessor-collector’s office — under one roof. Isabel … Continue reading →

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The Harris County Election Security Task Force

Posted on December 26, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

I hadn’t realized that this was a thing, but it was and I’m glad it was. A task force formed to ensure the security of the November election in Texas’ biggest county has found no evidence of wrongdoing after finishing … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Commissioners Court rejects Paxton allegation about Elections Administrator

Posted on December 3, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Straight to the point. The Democrats on Harris County Commissioners Court on Tuesday rejected an opinion from Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in which he said they illegally created an independent elections office and hired an administrator. The move invites … Continue reading →

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Paxton has a tantrum about the Harris County Election Administrator

Posted on December 1, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Someone is going to have to help me understand this, because I’m clearly missing something. Harris County failed to follow the Texas Election Code when it created an independent election administration office, rendering the office and the appointment of Isabel … Continue reading →

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