Voters to decide on next mayor

Morris Nichols was having a fun day with his son when he remembered he had to go vote. So before heading to Bellissimo on East 33rd Street for lunch, Nichols and his three-and-half-year-old son stopped by Independence Heights Community Center.

“He probably won’t remember much right now,” Nichols said. “But if we keep doing this, he will.”

He wasn’t the only father taking his son on a family trip to the polls: William Hamilton’s 17-year-old joined him when he went to vote.

“Next year, he’ll be in this process,” Hamilton said. “I want him to understand how important it is. My father was a political consultant for many decades. This is something that we try to teach.”

While Nichols entered the polling location to vote for state Sen. John Whitmire, Hamilton was torn on how to cast his mayoral ballot.

“I’m just going to think about who I have more access to,” Hamilton said. “Who’s more accessible.”

—Peter Warren, 1:57 p.m.

Political differences aside, the women of Houston’s City Council are rallying to support their colleague, District G incumbent Mary Nan Huffman, over her challenger Tony Buzbee.

In the November election, Huffman got 49.45% of the vote while Buzbee received 41.29%. Neither had enough to win outright.

Huffman’s female colleagues had a fundraiser for her on the first night of early voting.

“Please join the women of City Council, Amy Peck, Tarsha Jackson, Abbie Kamin, Carolyn Evans-Shabazz, Tiffany Thomas, Karla Cisneros, Martha Castex-Tatum, Letitia Plummer and Sallie Alcorn in supporting Councilmember Huffman,” the email invitation to the fundraiser read. 

A line of people waited in the humidity to cast their ballot at Tanglewood Middle School. Not everyone was excited about the candidates. Some voters, like 68-year-old Jim Drew, hadn’t immersed themselves in the news and simply wanted to fulfill their civic duty.

“Just like you’re serving on a jury,” he said.

Fixing the streets was top of mind for Robert Williams, 66, who voted for state Sen. John Whitmire. He didn’t feel U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee should step away from her congressional position to enter a local race. He felt Whitmire would be better suited to handle the city’s practical concerns like finances.

Williams also recognized other names on the ballot. He felt District G City Council candidate Tony Buzbee was too “right-wing” and voted for incumbent Mary Nan Huffman. As for the city controller’s race, Williams felt he had seen Orlando Sanchez’s name on the ballot one too many times, so he went with Chris Hollins.

The Tanglewood polling place wasn’t the first choice for other voters. Tim Garison, 67, drove there after encountering a 25-to-30-minute wait at the nearby Briargrove Elementary.

He was happy to see the turnout, he said. He declined to say how he voted, but said, “It’s good to see a new mayor coming in.”

—Julian Gill, 1:19 p.m.

Shannon Carroll didn’t go to work Friday after coming down with a sickness. But she wasn’t going to take a sick day on voting.

“It’s our job,” Carroll said outside Independence Heights Community Center. “We have to. It’s my right. I got out of a sick bed to come vote.”

—Peter Warren, 1:13 p.m.

U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee and state Sen. John Whitmire both have to energize their voter bases for December’s runoff election. Since the beginning of the cycle, polls have shown that the candidates’ respective supporters are sharply divided by race.

In the November race, the voting precincts where Whitmire outperformed Jackson Lee had a median demographic composition that was 45% White, 5% Black and 29% Hispanic or Latino, as defined by the U.S. Census. The median composition of Jackson Lee’s strongholds was 7% White, 33% Black and 42% Hispanic or Latino.

“What is extremely important here is how candidates engage voters, mobilize voters and persuade them to go out and vote,” said Jeronimo Cortina, a political science professor at the University of Houston.

Incumbent Letitia Plummer and her opponent, retired Air Force lieutenant colonel Roy Morales, both cite public safety as a priority. However, they offer different approaches.

‘I throw it all away’

Stacy and Gwendolyn Presley strolled right past campaign volunteers in front of River Oaks Elementary. Stacy voted lsat week and Gwendolyn, age 4, had also made her choice.

“Mama, let’s go slide,” Gwendolyn said as Stacy shooed a volunteer from handing her a flier.

Presley always votes early to avoid the “hubbub” of the last day. This year, she said, nothing really stoked her interest. Her mayoral choices were between “two people saying the same thing to different groups,” while her local City Council race, District G, was littering her mailbox.

“I throw it all away,” she said.

—Dug Begley, 11:58 a.m.

Stopping in Moody Park around lunchtime, Laura Bard came prepared. She’d already done her homework and listened to the candidates. All that was left were some button pushes.

Bard said she struggled with the mayor’s race because she liked both candidates.

“Sheila always votes the way I like, but John has been very competent and his experience — and her experience — I think they would both make good mayors.”

Her City Council choice was far clearer.

“It’s important,” Bard said. “The city is exploding, and it needs strong leadership.”

—Dug Begley, 12:11 p.m.

How will the new controller tackle Houston’s finances?

Outgoing city controller Chris Brown warns that Houston will need to correct its financial issues in the next three years or face consequences. Harris County Clerk Chris Hollins and former Harris County Treasurer Orlando Sanchez are vying for the controller job in the runoff election.

Maria Vaughan said the runoff for mayor was a hard decision because she didn’t know either state Sen. John Whitmire or U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee personally.

“I’m from a small town and used to knowing everybody in it,” Vaughan said. “The city of Houston, you just can’t do that.”

She said that “unfortunately” she had to rely on the internet for her research into the candidates.

Vaughan cast her ballot for Jackson Lee at Kingwood Community Center.

“I did look up their records,” Vaughan said. “That’s all I could do.”

—Peter Warren, 11:45 a.m.

‘They serve the public’

This year’s mayoral race was the first for Tammy Kentner: The native Canadian gained her U.S. citizenship in 2021.

She decided to cast her ballot for U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee.

Kentner wanted “someone who’s gonna keep in mind that they serve the public and not the GOP.”

—Abby Church, 11:25 a.m.

Ingrid McNeil’s work schedule made it impossible for her to vote early, but she showed up Saturday at Field Elementary to cast her vote in the runoff.

She voted for state Sen. John Whitmire. But McNeil waffled — U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, she said, has done some good stuff. McNeil’s child goes to Field, and she said Jackson Lee was instrumental in helping transform the school.

“(Whitmire’s) going to be the right answer, but it was a really tough one for me,” McNeil said.

Her vote for Whitmire came down to policy and what she called his ability to guide bipartisan legislation.

“You’ve got to be able to get along,” McNeil said.

—Abby Church, 11:14 a.m.

‘Then I should probably go buy a lottery ticket’

Dressed in a Houston Astros T-shirt and hat at Kingwood Community Center on Saturday morning, Texas A&M alum Eric Albert has witnessed two of his favorite teams undergo leadership changes this past month.

He voted for state Sen. John Whitmire, saying he wasn’t impressed with U.S. Rep. Shelia Jackson Lee’s track record.

Albert approved of the Espada and Elko hires — and hopes to finish the year with a Whitmire win.

“Then I should probably go buy a lottery ticket,” Albert said.

—Peter Warren, 11:07 a.m.

‘I have been struggling with this’

Rain was just starting to trickle from a hazy Houston sky when Elyssa Schnurr got out of her white SUV to vote at Eugene Field Elementary Saturday morning.

Doing her civic duty felt like a break — she’s preparing for her grandson’s birthday party this afternoon.

Even as she headed to the polls, she didn’t quite know who she wanted as Houston’s next mayor.

“I am like, torn,” Schnurr said. “I have been struggling with this, you know, whether I’m voting for Whitmire or (Jackson) Lee.”

She hoped the answer would come to her when she approached her voting machine.

“We’ll see,” Schnurr said.

—Abby Church, 11:04 a.m.

Voters sound off on public safety

River Oaks might be among the toniest parts of Houston, but many of its voters are very focused on what they consider to be a growing crime problem.

“It’s everywhere, it can happen to anyone,” Lisa Donnell said.

Three residents voting this morning at River Oaks Elementary cited crime as their reason for supporting state Sen. John Whitmire. They said his strategy for prosecuting criminals resonated more than what they felt was U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee’s focus on social services. They characterized her position as one that lacked consequences.

“It is not about liberal or conservative, it is about we should not be scared into staying in our homes,” Donnell said.

She thought Whitmire had succeeded in the Texas Senate by being supportive of police and prosecutors while also encouraging rehabilitation programs.

“He crosses a party line, and I don’t think Sheila does at all,” Donnell said. “She only blames people.”

—Dug Begley, 10:56 a.m.

Dolores Garza, 75, hasn’t forgotten that U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee sought to impeach former President Donald Trump, whom Garza supported in 2016.

“I didn’t like how that was handled,” she said at the Tracy Gee Community Center in Westchase.

That was enough to sway her vote toward state Sen. John Whitmire, even though she wasn’t excited about either candidate.

Eric Rougier, however, valued Jackson Lee’s experience. A 50-year-old who typically votes Democrat, Rougier felt Jackson Lee had done a good job representing the district.

“Sheila Jackson Lee is the name that we’ve known,” he said.

—Julian Gill, 10:51 a.m.

This might be Scott Davidson’s last election in Houston.

The retired Army master sergeant plans to move to San Antonio over what he feels is rampant corruption in city politics.

“The politicians put power first, party second, money third,” said Davidson, 68.

Like many voters walking out of the Tracy Gee Community Center in Westchase, Davidson’s vote for state Sen. John Whitmire was more of a vote against U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, whom he associates with “defunding the police.”

Overall, he’s unhappy with the state of the city.

“All they talk about is fixing the roads and they never fix them,” he said. “And they can’t account for their budgets.”

—Julian Gill, 10:35 a.m.

Kathy Whitmire, Houston’s former mayor, endorsed U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee in the mayoral runoff against state Sen. John Whitmire.

Her late husband, Jim Whitmire, was John Whitmire’s brother.

“Whether at the Council table, in the Court, or working in the community, Sheila proved herself to be a hard-working and caring public servant with creative ideas to strengthen Houston’s economy and make each neighborhood safer and more livable,” Kathy Whitmire said in a statement. “I believe Sheila Jackson Lee is the best choice to lead Houston as the next Mayor!”

Another former Houston mayor, Annise Parker, endorsed Whitmire.

“John Whitmire has the experience and knowledge to succeed as Mayor of Houston,” Parker said in a statement. “He understands that our city’s budget is structurally unbalanced and he isn’t afraid to make tough choices — funding only what we can afford, with a priority put on public safety, infrastructure and basic city services. I endorse John Whitmire for Mayor of Houston.”

A little more than two hours after polls opened Saturday morning, mayoral candidate state Sen. John Whitmire put out a post on X, the social media site formerly known as Twitter, stating the polls had closed.

“The polls have now officially closed!” the post read. “I’m so thankful for all the support I’ve received during this campaign. And I’m so proud of my team for their dedication and hard work.”

Houston polls will be open until 7 p.m. Whitmire’s tweet has since been deleted.

Whitmire’s campaign spokesperson, Sue Davis, wrote in a text to the Chronicle that the post was a mistake made by the person in charge of digital.

“That’s what happens when you try to get ahead of yourself with posts,” she wrote.

It isn’t the first voting schedule flub this election cycle.

Rachael Ross planned to vote early. She, really, really did, she said, but “everything got away from me.”

Then she drew a Saturday night shift at her retail job, which led to a 9:30 a.m. stop at the West Gray Multi-Service Center.

“I thought about not voting,” Ross admitted. “You think, ‘What’s the point?’”

She woke up Saturday and changed her mind. It’s her only chance to have a say in issues that are important to her, such as keeping the city clean, the streets paved, and the parks open and accessible to all.

Still, it took some motivation. She stopped by Starbucks for a mochachino and a scone. Neither left her energized — nor did the platforms of the two mayoral hopefuls.

“They all promise this or that,” Ross said. “I’m not excited that they’ll do anything different… I wish there was someone else I felt anything about.”

4,200 clerks (approximately).

As someone who cut the cord on cable and can’t get a good local TV signal, Ryan Calhoun couldn’t watch the runoff debates.

So Calhoun used the local League of Women Voters website to learn about the candidates’ positions. But he walked away from his research admitting neither mayoral candidate stood out, even though he showed up to vote at Kingwood Community Center.

“I don’t think that there’s any election in recent memory where I’ve voted for somebody that I’ve been excited about,” Calhoun said. “It’s largely been about who do I find less objectionable.”

—Peter Warren, 9:37 a.m.

Both mayoral candidates have made an issue of Houston’s crime rate, rallying voters such as Bridget Sam.

Walking into the West Gray Multi-Service Center, Sam said everyone in Houston faces the threat of crime, regardless of neighborhood. Solving it, she said, is a matter of putting more responsible police officers on the streets, but also of having the programs and policies meant to lessen the risk of robberies, thefts and other offenses.

“I want to go with the person who is committed and has a track record for making a difference,” Sam said.

She said that person, for her, is U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee.

“When you see someone in the community, listening to people and hearing their concerns, that makes a difference,” she said.

More people were at HCC West for class than to cast their ballots on Saturday morning, but mayoral runoff voters still trickled in.

Steve Smith, 73, voted for state Sen. John Whitmire as the “lesser of the evils.” The recording of allegedly U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee berating a staff member “confirmed” his vote.

Donald Jacobs heard Jackson Lee on the radio. “She’s intelligent, but I just felt that maybe she wasn’t the stronger of the two candidates.”

Don Gibbons, 53, didn’t want to say how he voted, but said he was swayed less by personal issues than by a candidate’s “record of effectiveness.”

He was disappointed by the recent turnout.

“Too few people voted on Election Day,” he said.

—Julian Gill, 9:13 a.m.

Most people arrive at the polls in a car. Shellie Dick rolled up in a school bus.

A Humble ISD teacher and coach, Dick had already clocked some miles by the time he parked the yellow bus at Kingwood Community Center.

He started his morning by dropping off one of Kingwood High School’s basketball teams at a tournament. While they played, Dick made a quick stop at the polls.

“My wife and I, we talked about it. She’s on her way to go vote. I said, ‘Oh crap, I don’t have my vehicle,’” Dick said. “I want to make sure I got it done.”

—Peter Warren, 9:00 a.m.

Carolina Avila voted — but only because of Wang Chung and Ozzy.

“John Whitmire took a stand for the dogs, the dog problem we have, and that is very important to me,” Avila said, pushing her two dogs in a stroller away from the West Gray Multi-Service Center.

Avila said she didn’t see much different between Whitmire and his opponent, U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee.

“They basically have the same issues and the same concerns,” she said.

The decider for Avila was Whitmire saying he wanted to focus on controlling stray dogs via city services.

Avila volunteers with local animal groups and said action is needed.

“That was really what got me to vote,” she said.

Both Wang Chung, a 16-year-old Chinese Crested and Ozzy, an eight-year-old Mexican shorthair, declined to comment.

Houston City Council candidate Twila Carter, who is running for the At-Large 3 seat against Richard Cantu, spent her Saturday morning hopping around to different polling locations. By 8:20 a.m., she made her fourth stop of the day at Kingwood Community Center.

“Parking lot’s pretty quiet here this morning,” she said. “Election Day, it was solid cars nonstop. We were directing traffic out here.”

—Peter Warren, 8:28 a.m.

The top of today’s runoff ticket brought Brenda and Don Brady out to vote.

“We were pretty specific about who we wanted to be mayor,” Brenda Brady said. “And also who (we) didn’t want to be mayor.”

Don hasn’t voted in a mayoral election since 1979, when he moved to West University Place.

“Now I’m back,” he said, agreeing his wife that this race was too vital to skip casting a ballot.

While neither would specify whom they voted for, Don Brady said it should be obvious.

“If you guessed, I’d say you’re probably right,” he said.

Houston can be a sprawling city, but Tip O’Neill was right: All politics is local.

Wallace Ward showed up at the West Gray Multi-Service Center out of civic duty to vote, but said he was motivated to vote for John Whitmire for mayor because Whitmire championed a proposal dear to Ward’s heart.

“He really helped us with the Lorraine Cherry Nature Preserve,” Ward said after casting his ballot shortly after 7 a.m.

The preserve, formerly the West 11th Street Park in the Timbergrove area, is now 20 acres of state-supported wilderness. Ward, vice president of the private group that supports the preserve, credited Whitmire’s work in the Texas Senate with protecting the property.

U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee trailed state Sen. John Whitmire by 6.9 percentage points after November’s election, which sent the two to a December runoff. But the top finisher in Houston’s last 20 elections has either won outright or gone on to win their runoffs.

“The primary focus of the runoff will be turnout, and who can get their voters most excited,” said Nancy Sims, a professor of political science at the University of Houston. “On the list of things to do in the holiday season, picking the next mayor falls where on that list?”

You know that moment just before a party when all the chips and drinks are set up and you wonder, What if nobody comes? 

That’s where election workers are right now.

Luis Adame and other poll workers showed up at the West Gray Multi-Service Center around 5:30 a.m. to ready the machines and the site for what’s expected to be a light-turnout runoff election.

Despite predictions that place turnout in the 12 to 15% range, Adame said the job is the same.

“We are here to serve the voters,” he said.

At 7 a.m., when the doors were pulled open and the first of about a dozen waiting voters walked in, everything was ready — regardless of who shows up.