Here’s the Chron overview of the race to succeed term limited Council Member (now Mayoral candidate) Steve Costello in At Large #1.
CM Stephen Costello
M. “Griff” Griffin
A perennial candidate in Houston politics, Griffin is running for the council for the 11th time, 22 years after first competing for a spot in 1993. The former owner of Griff’s, a sports bar in the Montrose area that he opened in 1965, Griffin is now a private investigator.
“As an investigator on the City Council, I can do a little more checking out,” Griffin said.
[…]
Mike Knox
Knox, a second-time candidate, positions himself as the conservative the council needs.
“I’m the conservative candidate running to bring conservative financial responsibility to our city’s issues,” Knox said.
[…]
Lane Lewis
Seen by many as the front-runner, Lewis is chair of the Harris County Democratic Party.
An education consultant and former teacher, Lewis ran for the council’s District A seat in 2009 and lost in a runoff. His priorities include infrastructure, transportation and attracting middle-class jobs to Houston to improve the city’s quality of life, but his pitch for office centers on his deep connections in local politics.
[…]
Tom McCasland
McCasland is a first-time candidate for City Hall, but he’s not new to local government. The former CEO of the Harris County Housing Authority, McCasland resigned in August to focus on his campaign.
“I plan to be a full-time city councilperson. I’m the only candidate committed to that,” McCasland said.
[…]
Chris Oliver
Houston Community College trustee Oliver is running for the City Council 15 years after his first attempt in 2000. With his slogan, “An Even Better Houston, An Even Better Tomorrow,” Oliver is looking to address the city’s infrastructure, economic development, safety and fiscal responsibility issues.
“I think we’re facing serious challenges, and now is the time to see whether or not we can start addressing these issues,” Oliver said. “I can serve as a voice to address some other issues we face, from infrastructure to community development.”
[…]
Jenifer Rene Pool
Pool is an activist and owner of a Houston construction company. Pool is running for the City Council for the third time since 2011.
Pool has been an appointee to several city commissions and is a former president of the Houston GLBT Political Caucus.
“I work hard to represent those who don’t have a voice and I use what influence I have to make everyone’s life a little better,” Pool said.
[…]
Georgia Provost
Photographer and philanthropist Georgia Provost is making her second run for the City Council. A volunteer for many causes, including the Houston Area Urban League, injured law enforcement officers, and fundraising for her alma mater, Texas Southern University, Provost is looking to bring those skills to the City Council.
In addition to addressing infrastructure and economic development, Provost wants to re-evaluate Houston’s city charter to allow council members to more easily add items to the agenda.
There’s also perennial candidate James Partsch-Galvan, who hails from the planet Murgatroid. I have interviews with Lewis, McCasland, Pool, and Oliver and links to Q&As elsewhere for them and others on my Election 2015 page, and interviews with Knox and Provost from the last cycle on my Election 2013 page. McCasland is the Chron candidate, Knox is the Hotze candidate, and Lewis has most of the other endorsements. Here are the totals from their 30 day finance reports, also available on the Election 2015 page:
Candidate Raised Spent Loans On Hand
===================================================
Griffin 1,000 1,600 0 895
Knox 22,940 11,370 0 9,349
Lewis 40,164 64,479 100 48,803
McCasland 60,978 33,222 0 112,443
Oliver 9,400 7,840 0 25,230
PartschGalvan
Pool
Provost 1,956 6,841 0 543
Neither Pool nor Partsch-Galvan have reports available as yet. Griff’s one contribution was from himself, and the two expenditures I saw listed were for less than $1,000 combined, so I have no idea what his numbers mean. I’ve received one mailer from McCasland, and have seen sponsored Facebook posts from him, Lewis, Oliver, and Pool. I tend to agree with the consensus that Lewis is in a good position to make the runoff, but beyond that I have no idea. Who are you supporting in this race?
Today at city hall mike kubosh,co brad Bradford and jack Christie continued to embrace right to labor fees by voting against allowing 25 additional taxi permits in Houston, while most us cities are abolishing them co bradbradford and mike Kubosh and jack Christie are embracing them,-now I will teach these 3 a legal lesson on the game of politics.