We are starting to hear some names in CD18

The first potential candidate to publicly acknowledge an interest in CD18 is former Mayor Sylvester Turner.

Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee

Former Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner has confirmed with KHOU 11 News anchor Len Cannon that he is “seriously considering” a run for Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee’s seat after it was left vacant when she died Friday.

Jackson Lee died at the age of 74 after battling pancreatic cancer.

Turner told Cannon that only the passing of his friend at this critical junction in the election cycle would cause him to come out of retirement. He said that with all that’s happening at the national level, he believes the 18th Congressional seat needs stability and continuity.

Turner told KHOU 11 that he would make a decision in the coming days.

Turner, 69, served as mayor of Houston from Jan. 1, 2016, to Jan. 1, 2024. Prior to that, he served as a member of the Texas House of Representatives from 1989 to 2016.

He also had his own battle with cancer back in 2022, which he underwent treatment for.

See here for some background. An earlier story on Click2Houston mentioned another name:

“Those are big shoes to fill. I don’t think anyone can fill the shoes of the great Sheila Jackson Lee,” said State Representative Jarvis Johnson. Johnson confirmed his candidacy during a phone call on Monday afternoon with KPRC 2 Investigates Mario Diaz, adding, “Everybody else is going to play footsie; that is the difference with me.”

Johnson emphasized that the 18th District has had a “fighter” representing them in Washington D.C. for nearly thirty years, and he plans to continue that legacy.

As for why he’s running, Johnson said, “These are consequential times. This is one of the most important races in the country. Districts like the 18th have to excite the new generation of voters. I hope to invigorate the youth movement. I want to engage this district because I want to get more people to the polls to help the presidential race.”

Who else is in the mix? Democratic sources have confirmed that several well-known names are considering their options.

Former Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner is reportedly looking to make a run, with one source stating, “It’s a done deal.”

Thanks to Campos for that link. Given how vindictive Mayor Whitmire has been to his predecessor for the sin of having endorsed SJL in the Mayoral runoff, it would be pretty funny if Turner won this election. Not saying that’s what should happen or what will happen, just that I got a chuckle out of the thought.

I’m aware of some other names out there, but at this point it’s all speculation. As a precinct chair in CD18 and having gone though this before in 2016 for Commissioners Court, I will note that while anyone can say they’re running for the now-open Democratic nomination for CD18, one has to be nominated by one of the precinct chairs during the selection meeting in order to be considered. I’m sure both Mayor Turner and Rep. Johnson will be able to get a Chair to do that, I’m just noting this for the record. There were a couple of people in 2016 who said they were running for Commissioners Court Precinct 1 but did not get nominated by a Chair.

Couple other points to note. We precinct chairs had a call on Monday night to talk about the process. There will be a candidate forum – details to come – organized by Melanie Miles on August 10. We ought to get a reasonably clear idea of who is interested in this at that event, though I will note that some potential candidates, mostly current Houston City Council members, would be subject to “resign to run” if they announced themselves as candidates then. They might wait until the actual nomination meeting if they’re fully invested in pursuing this.

As to when that meeting will be, that is still to be determined. It will have to be before the DNC in Chicago because several precinct chairs will be travelling there. The most likely time for the nomination meeting is August 11-16, somewhere in there. I’ll let you know when I know.

UPDATE: More names from the Chron.

State Reps. Jolanda Jones and Jarvis Johnson are among the current elected officials that serve in districts overlapping with the late congresswoman’s district. Johnson announced Tuesday his bid for Jackson Lee’s seat.

“In light of her recent passing, we approach this announcement with utmost care and reverence for her legacy,” Johnson said. “Given the tight timeline — Democratic party decisions looming within a month — we must continue meeting the people’s needs.”

Bishop James Dixon, a longtime friend of Jackson Lee’s family whose church held a prayer vigil for the late congresswoman before her passing, told the Chronicle on Tuesday that many in his community have encouraged him to run for the seat. He said he is humbled by the possibility of continuing Jackson Lee’s legacy in the district and that he is “thinking about it very seriously and praying about it even more seriously.”

Former Houston City Councilmember Dwight Boykins, a district resident and friend of the late congresswoman, also confirmed his interest in the race on Tuesday. He said, however, that he does not yet wish to make an official announcement out of respect for Jackson Lee and her family.

“I think it’s inappropriate to be campaigning for her seat before she is buried, so I’m not going to do it,” Boykins said. “I owe her the respect to at least let her be laid to rest before I officially make any announcement.”

Edwards is among the other candidates potentially interested in the seat. She did not respond to requests for comment on whether she plans to re-enter the race.

Note that this doesn’t say that Rep. Jones is running, just that she’s a potential candidate. Also still in the “potential candidate” group is Amanda Edwards, and I have to say I’m a little surprised that we haven’t heard from her yet. It’s still early, but as noted above the timeline for this is very short.

UPDATE: “The meeting likely will take place Aug. 15 or 17, [HCDP Chair Mike] Doyle said, per the Houston Landing. No new names in that article.

UPDATE: The Trib weighs in, and brings a new name.

Among the declared and potential Democratic candidates are former Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner, state Rep. Jarvis Johnson and Houston Councilwoman Letitia Plummer. It was not immediately clear whether Amanda Edwards, who finished second in the district’s original primary last year, would seek the seat again.

[…]

Edwards, a former intern in Jackson Lee’s office, has not said whether she intends to seek the nomination.

Plummer, who holds an at-large seat on Houston’s city council, said she was interested in a bid but would wait for legal advice on whether the city’s policy of requiring council members to resign before seeking other offices would apply to the unusual nomination process in the House race. Resigning her seat without securing the nomination would be difficult, Plummer said, but added that this race is an “opportunity that will probably never come again.”

“Sheila Jackson Lee delivered, and you have to find an advocate and also have the relationships to deliver,” Plummer said. “Whoever takes that seat has to be able to know have to drive dollars from the federal government down to the city and the county.”

Now that her name is in print elsewhere, I will say that I had CM Plummer in mind when I mentioned candidates who might not want to be overt about their interest until the last minute. We’ll see what happens with her from here.

Related Posts:

• The election to nominate a candidate in CD18 has been set
• Two more small updates on CD18
• Two small updates on the CD18 race