Tag Archives: Election 2009

The non-filers

Posted on July 25, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

We are now more than a week beyond the deadline to file campaign finance reports for City of Houston elections. The following candidates for city office have not yet filed a campaign finance report for July: Michael Williams, At Large … Continue reading →

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Tuesday late filers report

Posted on July 19, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

This is a semi-regular tracker of late campaign finance report filings for City of Houston elections. I’ll keep this up until either everyone has filed, or we all get sick of it and I move onto other trivial obsessions. With … Continue reading →

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Inspector General cites CM Jones

Posted on June 10, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Ouch. Houston City Councilwoman Jolanda Jones used city employees to help run her personal law practice and instructed her staff not to meet with investigators looking into her alleged misconduct, the city’s inspector general has determined. For three of the … Continue reading →

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May elections

Posted on June 8, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

As we know, the Lege passed a bill that would have the effect of moving the date for primary runoffs into May. This is causing heartburn for cities like Austin that hold their municipal elections in May of even numbered … Continue reading →

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The Mayor and the firefighters

Posted on May 31, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Despite the tone of this, I wouldn’t make too much of it. While looking for tens of millions of dollars through a combination of cuts, deferrals, savings and fee hikes, Mayor Annise Parker repeatedly has identified the Houston Fire Department … Continue reading →

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More on the new Council districts

Posted on May 20, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

For just about everything you could want to know about the new Council districts, go read Greg. Population and registered voter data, 2009 election returns, a look at how the districts have changed and may change in the future, it’s … Continue reading →

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Mayor Parker officially kicks off her re-election campaign

Posted on April 25, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

We were out of town over the weekend, so I missed this. An Easter weekend campaign event replete with rousing speeches, dogs of both the hot and four-legged variety and a kids’ Easter egg “scramble” kicked off Mayor Annise Parker’s … Continue reading →

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More on the new Council map

Posted on April 8, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s the Chron story about the proposed new Council map. Reactions were about what you’d expect for the most part. “There’s two Latino council members and you have, currently, nine districts,” [District I Council Member James Rodriguez] said. “We’re moving … Continue reading →

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Locke and Lanier endorse Parker

Posted on April 1, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

More support for Mayor Parker’s re-election bid. Mayor Annise Parker on Wednesday scored the endorsements of her 2009 opponent Gene Locke and former Mayor Bob Lanier, two of Houston’s most prominent power brokers, as she prepares to ask voters for … Continue reading →

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So will we have a Mayor’s race or not?

Posted on March 8, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

We’re now more than a month into the city election fundraising season, and as of this week the only person to file a declaration of Treasurer for the office of Mayor is the incumbent, Annise Parker. As of this time … Continue reading →

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Who’s got a treasurer?

Posted on February 9, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Noel Freeman, in a note on his Facebook page takes a look at who has filed a proper treasurer appointment for a City Council race, and who has not. (He did a “who’s in so far” report in 2009, too.) … Continue reading →

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Unfinished business

Posted on January 18, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

One thing that stood out to me from the Chron’s Q&A with Noel Freeman, the newly-elected president of the Houston GLBT Political Caucus: Q. What has changed about Houston’s GLBT community in past three decades? A. We have branched out. … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , | 4 Comments

A very early look at the 2011 elections

Posted on January 3, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Texas on the Potomac lists 11 national races of interest for 2011. Well, of interest to some – outside of the Dallas Mayoral race, none of these mean much to me, and that’s only if incumbent Tom Leppart leaves to … Continue reading →

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Straight ticket voting and the city propositions

Posted on November 15, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

As you know, the Chron recently wrote an editorial decrying the rise in straight ticket voting. Among other things, they said: In two highly publicized Houston propositions on the ballot last Tuesday, nearly 56,000 voters did not register a choice … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2010 | Tagged , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

White and Parker

Posted on May 15, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I’m not particularly concerned about this. Gov. Rick Perry has found an unlikely — and apparently unwitting — ally in his effort to paint Bill White as a liberal spendthrift who left Houston in arrears: Mayor Annise Parker. As she … Continue reading →

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Why these term limits?

Posted on April 27, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

David Mincberg has an op-ed about the city’s term limits law that makes some interesting points but doesn’t quite get at the issue of whether the system we actually have now is the best way to meet the goals of … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 16 Comments

The anti-red light camera referendum drive begins

Posted on April 25, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

As we know, the anti-red light camera forces intend to collect enough petition signatures to put a charter referendum on the ballot this November. On Friday, they got started. Because red-light camera citations remain outside the realm of tickets that … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , | 41 Comments

McGuff interviews the Mayor

Posted on February 23, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Mayor Annise Parker discusses her social media strategy with Mike McGuff: Interesting stuff. Among other things, the Mayor mentions that a new and improved City of Houston website is on its way. I can’t wait to see it.

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The Mayor on Metro

Posted on February 9, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

As we know, one of Mayor Annise Parker’s transition teams is looking at Metro. We won’t get their report till the end of the month, but here’s a peek at some of the things they’re thinking about. Parker has signaled … Continue reading →

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Interview with Council Member Jarvis Johnson

Posted on February 3, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Running to unseat Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee in CD18 is Houston City Council Member Jarvis Johnson, who was recently elected to a third and final term in District B. (My interview with him from that race is here.) As he … Continue reading →

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January City of Houston campaign finance reports

Posted on January 24, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

In addition to state and federal officeholders/candidates, January 15 was also the deadline for City of Houston folks to file their campaign finance reports as well. As there are no elections coming up any time soon, I will not be … Continue reading →

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Boycott us, please!

Posted on January 22, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Now this is something I can really get behind. If you think the folks in Haiti are having a rough time, just wait until Houstonians feel the economic effects of Pastor David Grisham’s boycott against our city of sin. Launched … Continue reading →

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Dynamo fans rally for the stadium

Posted on January 21, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

There was a rally by Houston Dynamo fans over the weekend in support of getting the stadium deal done. Hair Balls and the Chron’s Glenn Davis have coverage. From what I can see, it looks to me like the ralliers … Continue reading →

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Meet Team Parker

Posted on January 18, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron peeks behind the curtain at the people who will be working the most closely with Mayor Parker. They fall into roughly three camps: senior aides from her time as controller, City Hall veterans and a lone political operative … Continue reading →

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Houston Area Table meeting Tuesday

Posted on January 17, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

If you’re getting tired of reading what I’ve got to say and would rather hear me say it out loud, come to the Houston Area Table meeting this Tuesday, January 19 and see if I sound any better that way. … Continue reading →

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How Dave Wilson snuck into the race against Eversole

Posted on January 6, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Right wing hatemonger Dave Wilson’s last minute filing in the Democratic Party against County Commissioner Jerry Eversole caused a lot of confusion yesterday as people tried to figure out just who it was that filed. Wilson himself didn’t show his … Continue reading →

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The inauguration

Posted on January 4, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Here was my view of today’s inaugural festivities: Click the photo for a larger version. Tiffany and I were seated next to Martha, who has some pictures as well as a post about Mayor Parker’s inaugural address. It was an … Continue reading →

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The Whites say goodbye

Posted on January 4, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Outgoing Mayor Bill White and First Lady Andrea White say goodbye and thank you to Houstonians as his term comes to an end. Needless to say, they won’t exactly be riding off into the sunset any time soon; with any … Continue reading →

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Hoang’s agenda

Posted on January 3, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Tomorrow is the public swearing-in ceremony for Mayor Annise Parker. After she retakes her oath of office, she will then administer the oath to all new and returning City Council members. One of them is the newly elected Member from … Continue reading →

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Parker to be officially sworn in today

Posted on January 2, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Possibly by the time you read this, we will have a new Mayor. In private ceremonies at City Hall, state District Judge Steven Kirkland, an old friend and former campaign manager, was scheduled to administer the oath of office [to … Continue reading →

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Hail to the (interim) Chief

Posted on January 1, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

As expected, HPD Chief Harold Hurtt has quietly slipped out the door in advance of Mayor-Elect Annise Parker taking the reins of the city. Until she names his replacement, here’s who will fill in. Executive Assistant Chief C.A. McClelland will … Continue reading →

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Annise Parker: Texas Progressive Alliance’s Texan of the Year

Posted on December 31, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

The Texan of the Year Award is voted on annually by the members of the Texas Progressive Alliance, the largest state-level organization of bloggers, blogs, and netroots activists in the United States. This year’s winner is Houston Mayor-Elect, Annise Parker: … Continue reading →

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Gov 2.0

Posted on December 31, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

I hope that the new year will bring more of this to Houston. Welcome to a movement the tech crowd is calling “Gov 2.0” — where mobile technology and GPS apps are helping give citizens like Newmark more of a … Continue reading →

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HCAD rules for Hoang in homestead dispute

Posted on December 29, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

On Christmas Eve, the Chron reported that Council Member-Elect Al Hoang and his wife had claimed homestead exemptions on two separate houses, one in Houston and one in Pearland. Now the Harris County Appraisal District has verified Hoang’s explanation about … Continue reading →

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