Tag Archives: Lina Hidalgo

Endorsement Regrets Watch: She’s not going to do that

Posted on November 3, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

I can’t. I just can’t. Why do two West Texas oil billionaires — Christian nationalists waging war against secular public schools — care who becomes the next chief executive of Harris County, hundreds of miles from their homes? Why did a Houston real … Continue reading →

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Larry Veselka: The Chron got it wrong in the County Judge endorsement

Posted on November 2, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

(Note: The following is a guest post that was submitted to me. I occasionally solicit guest posts, and also occasionally accept them from people I trust.) A couple of weeks ago the Chronicle Editorial Board endorsed Judge Hidalgo’s opponent in … Continue reading →

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Ramsey and Cagle finish sabotaging the budget

Posted on October 26, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

They got what they wanted. Harris County’s prolonged political battle over the budget came to an end today. For over a month, the two GOP members of Commissioners Court have broken quorum, skipping meetings to prevent Democrats from passing their … Continue reading →

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UH/Hobby poll: Mealer 47, Hidalgo 45

Posted on October 25, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

They’re the only outfit that has polled Harris County so far, so at least there’s a basis for comparison. A new poll of Harris County voters shows that Alexandra del Moral Mealer and Lina Hidalgo are neck and neck in … Continue reading →

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Harris County asks for federal vote monitors

Posted on October 22, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

I agree with this. Houston and Harris County officials are asking the U.S. Department of Justice’s civil rights division to send monitors to assist in the upcoming November election in response to a letter the county received from the Texas … Continue reading →

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Republican Commissioners skip the meeting they called

Posted on October 18, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

On brand. So very on brand. The two Republican members of Harris County Commissioners Court have announced they will skip a special meeting Monday to discuss a compromise tax rate proposal by Precinct 2 Commissioner Adrian Garcia, reversing the position they took … Continue reading →

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There may be a county budget deal available

Posted on October 16, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

I don’t trust anything Commissioners Cagle and Ramsey say, but we’ll see. The two Republican members of Harris County Commissioners Court said Friday they would attend a special meeting Monday to discuss a compromise tax rate proposal by Precinct 2 … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: Travesty

Posted on October 13, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

I have to link to this atrocious Chron endorsement of Republican Alexandra Mealer, but I refuse to quote from it. Instead, I’m going to crib from the daily Texas AFL-CIO email newsletter, which had its own thoughts on the matter: … Continue reading →

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Just keep staying away, Commissioners

Posted on October 12, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

At this point the pattern is clear. They’re just going to keep staying away, at least until after the election. At which point one can hope that one of them will have a more permanent vacation from these duties. For … 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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The new county COVID risk assessment system

Posted on September 22, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

We’ll see how it works. Harris County has revamped its method for assessing the public’s risk for contracting COVID-19, replacing the threat level system that has been in place since early in the pandemic with a community level system that … Continue reading →

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Republican Commissioners skip out again

Posted on September 16, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Cowards. Harris County’s two Republican commissioners skipped Tuesday’s Commissioners Court meeting, preventing county leaders from passing a property tax rate and proposed budget for the next fiscal year beginning on Oct. 1. State law requires four members of the court … Continue reading →

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UH-TSU Texas Trends poll: Abbott 49-Beto 42, and Hidalgo 52-Mealer 42

Posted on September 10, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

From their webpage, scroll down to Report 1 and Report 2: In the race for governor, Republican Greg Abbott leads Democrat Beto O’Rourke by 7% among likely voters, 49% to 42%, with 7% undecided and 1% intending to vote for … Continue reading →

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Comptroller caves on phony “defunding” claim

Posted on September 8, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

In the end, he folded like a lawn chair. Harris County is moving through the process of passing a fiscal 2023 budget with a 1 percent dip in the property tax rate, after the specter of the state blocking its … Continue reading →

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Harris County approves the option of suing Comptroller over baloney “defunding” claim

Posted on September 2, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Good. Harris County Commissioners Court on Wednesday authorized a pair of private law firms to sue Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar, who accused the county of defunding law enforcement last week, forcing a halt to consideration of its $2.2 billion budget. … Continue reading →

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Harris County officially gets its $750 million from the GLO

Posted on September 1, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

With hopefully more to come, as well as something for Houston. Harris County Commissioners Court unanimously approved an agreement Wednesday with the Texas General Land Office to receive $750 million in federal flood mitigation funding, and called on the agency … Continue reading →

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Harris County looks to sue over Comptroller’s BS “defunding” claim

Posted on August 31, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Tell it to the judge. Harris County Commissioners Court this week is expected to hire an outside law firm to take legal action against the state and Comptroller Glenn Hegar, who accused the county of defunding law enforcement in violation … Continue reading →

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CC4 poll: Briones 44, Cagle 42

Posted on August 30, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: Lesley Briones, candidate for Harris County Commissioner, Precinct 4, released the results of a new poll today that shows her in the lead: Briones 44% / Cagle 42%. The poll was conducted August 9-13 by the national firm, … Continue reading →

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The Constables’ and Comptroller’s ridiculous complaint

Posted on August 24, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

This is transparent bullshit. Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar this week accused Harris County commissioners of defunding local constables and threatened to prevent the county from implementing its proposed 2023 budget if the county does not reverse course. In a letter … Continue reading →

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Commissioners Court approves its bond package

Posted on August 21, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

But not without some bitching and griping. Harris County Commissioners Court voted Thursday to put a $1.2 billion package on the November ballot this year, with the vast majority aimed at road construction. Tensions flared when Harris County Judge Lina … Continue reading →

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Commissioners Court plans to put a bond issue on the ballot

Posted on August 5, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

First one in seven years. Harris County voters will have more on their November ballot, after a divided commissioners court Tuesday took the first step toward a $1.2 billion bond package for police, parks, drainage and roads. Common with many … Continue reading →

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Who audits the auditors?

Posted on August 4, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

A novel idea. Not sure it will get anywhere, but it does send a message. Harris County Commissioners Court, by a 3-2 partisan vote, agreed to explore legal options, including a possible lawsuit, to challenge the results of a random … Continue reading →

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We need more monkeypox vaccines

Posted on July 29, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

We have a chance to get on top of this. Let’s try to take it. Houston-area leaders on Monday evening called for more vaccines to combat the small but growing number of local monkeypox infections. There are 57 reported cases … Continue reading →

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July 2022 campaign finance reports: Harris County

Posted on July 25, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Happy Mid-Year Campaign Finance Reporting Day to all who celebrate. Today we’ll be looking at the races of interest in Harris County, which thankfully for me has a lot fewer candidates to review than the last time we did this … Continue reading →

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That UH/Hobby poll has Judge Hidalgo up by one in Harris County

Posted on July 15, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Don’t know how many of these polls we’re going to get. Democrat Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo holds a 1 percentage point lead over Republican opponent Alexandra del Moral Mealer in polling results released Thursday by the University of Houston. … Continue reading →

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Commissioners Court takes some action on access to contraception

Posted on July 7, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

From last week: Harris County leaders on Tuesday passed a trio of items in support of women’s access to abortion and contraception in the wake of the Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade. The most significant of the three … Continue reading →

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We have a new Election Administrator

Posted on July 6, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: Harris County’s election commission today named Clifford D. Tatum the county’s next Elections Administrator. He is scheduled to take over from interim EA, Beth Stevens. Mr. Tatum is the chief information security officer for the DC Board … Continue reading →

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Still no new Election Administrator

Posted on July 2, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

C’mon, y’all. Harris County officials canceled an election commission meeting for the second time this week, again citing a lack of quorum because only two members were able to attend in person. The rescheduled meeting now is set for Tuesday. … Continue reading →

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No new election admin yet

Posted on June 29, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Hope this delay is brief. Harris County’s top election position remains unfilled, after a Monday meeting of the county’s election commission to select a candidate was canceled due to a lack of quorum. Their final pick will face a narrowing time … Continue reading →

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We have finalists for the Election Administrator job

Posted on June 16, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Good. The director of voting for Harris County will become the interim elections administrator, officials said Wednesday as the county elections commission narrowed its search for the permanent job to two candidates. Following a closed-door executive session of the Harris … Continue reading →

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Radack drops his redistricting lawsuit

Posted on June 7, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: Former Harris County Commissioner Steve Radack voluntarily dismissed the lawsuit he filed against Harris County Commissioners Court alleging Commissioners Court violated the Open Meetings Act during county redistricting. Below is a statement from Harris County Attorney Christian … Continue reading →

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Actually, May Election Day vote reporting was basically fine

Posted on May 10, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

This headline is correct, but it leaves out some relevant details. Even with help from constable’s offices, Harris County again was the last of the state’s largest counties to finish counting Saturday’s election results, turning its final tally to the … Continue reading →

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State task force recommendations on AstroWorld

Posted on April 22, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Interesting. To avoid a repeat of the mayhem at last year’s deadly Astroworld Festival, Texas needs to standardize its event permitting process, establish “clearly outlined triggers” for stopping shows and ensure local public safety agencies are organized in a clear … Continue reading →

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We will have a new elections administrator on July 1

Posted on April 21, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Let’s get the best we can. The Harris County Election Board on Tuesday voted to accept Elections Administrator Isabel Longoria’s resignation and hire a national search firm to find a replacement, two weeks after the five-member panel could only agree … Continue reading →

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