Houston Mayor Race Heating Up Early

Happy New Year! Who else is glad to leave 2018 behind? It was quite the year for all manner of negativity and civil unrest, so here's hoping that everyone has begun the year with lots of hope, positivity, and enthusiasm about the possibilities for the coming year. 

Speaking of possibilities, we have a city-wide election this year. All city council seats as well as the mayor are up for election/re-election. Folks are declaring left and right, buying ads and securing billboard space (be prepared to be ad weary by November). 

Already in the running to challenge Mayor Sylvester Turner are two candidates, one a political newbie, and one who ran against Turner and fell just short four years ago. 

Let's begin with former Marine and attorney Tony Buzbee. With an energetic personality, Buzbee is a trial lawyer who has had handled many high-profile lawsuits such as the Rick Perry and BP cases. He is the managing partner of Buzbee Law Firm and was named Attorney of the Year by Texas Lawyer Magazine in 2015. His campaign will be self-funded (ala Donald Trump) so he won't be depending on endorsements or contributions for funding. Buzbee has  also received a lot of free press already just by announcing his candidacy. He will, however, need votes to win, and therein lies the challenge. Can the urban Houston voters relate to a guy with a billion dollar art and car collection? The son of a middle class parents seems affable enough, time will tell if he can bridge the gap with Houston voters. 

Also rumored to be entering the mayoral fray this month is Bill King. Bill is the former mayor of Kemah (2001-2005), and was a candidate for mayor in 2015. He came in second in the general election and narrowly lost the run-off in the closest mayoral election in Houston’s history. A long-time public policy activist, Bill is a frequent contributor to the Houston public policy discussion with his blogs, books, and editorials. Bill has earned good name recognition with his last run for office and his consistent messaging about the


challenges facing Houston due to the lack of leadership and good fiscal management. A business-friendly moderate, King understands the importance of neighborhood improvements coupled with how a strong economy and affordability of doing business helps all Houstonians. 

Both Buzbee and King have taken to social media to point out the current administration's shortcomings. 

And last but not least, Sylvester Turner will seek re-election. Since he so narrowly won the runoff election in the last election cycle, it will be interesting to see how his record of the past three years will impact his popularity with voters. His margin of error is relatively narrow: 4,000 votes. After alienating the fire fighters and many voters with his handling of the Prop B Pay Parity issue (based on social media feedback), he has thrown a wrench in the political pundit's "certain to be reelected" rhetoric. In his initial election, the fire fighters were a force many-thousand strong that block walked and actively campaigned for Turner, that force will be noticeably absent in 2019. Maybe the Houston police will get out the vote? 

In any event, look for a very active Houston political season in 2019. We will keep you posted with the scoop on who's in and who's out in future posts.