For Congress
Voters must remember the runoffs as Houston shakes up its D.C. delegation.
We don’t get many chances like this one.
Voters cast ballots for members of Congress every two years, but the simple truth is these politicians are so entrenched in their positions they’re almost always re-elected, and nothing changes. Around Houston this year, though, things are different.
Our congressional delegation faces a rare shake-up. A couple of longtime incumbents are retiring, and another one faces his first serious challenge since he took office at the turn of the century. If you’re one of those people who complains about Congress not doing its job, maybe now is the time to do yours.
After interviewing the many candidates running for these seats, the Houston Chronicle editorial board made the following endorsements in the primary elections. We reiterate our support in the primary runoffs.
Republicans
United States Representative, District 2: Kevin Roberts
Congressman Ted Poe’s decision to retire after 14 years in office triggered a campaign calf-scramble between nine — count ’em, nine — Republicans in the GOP primary. His 2nd Congressional District is one of the most tortured examples of gerrymandering in all of Texas, with boundaries swirling around Montrose and the Heights, then west to Jersey Village, north to Kingwood and east to Atascocita. Nobody was surprised on primary election night when state Rep. Kevin Roberts made the runoff, but former Navy SEAL Dan Crenshaw scored a political upset after his dark-horse candidacy gained just enough last-minute momentum to vault him into second place. Crenshaw comes across as a charismatic candidate with a compelling life story, but we believe Roberts is still GOP voters’ better choice.
As a state representative, Roberts had the foresight to write and pass a resolution urging Congress to provide funding for a storm surge barrier along the Texas coast — before Hurricane Harvey. He also passed bills that reduced state regulations, improved foster care, limited fees on student financial aid for veterans and expanded anti-nuisance laws. He’s been endorsed by everyone from the NRA to Harris County Judge Ed Emmett and Commissioner Jack Cagle, who’ve been impressed with his command of flood control issues. Crenshaw is an outstanding show horse, but Roberts is a proven workhorse.
United States Representative, District 29: Phillip Aronoff
Democratic Congressman Gene Green is retiring from the 29th Congressional District, which wraps around Harris County’s north and east sides. It encompasses largely Hispanic neighborhoods from inside the North Loop to the area just south of Intercontinental Airport, then drops down Beltway 8 East all the way down to Pasadena and Hobby Airport. Democratic state Sen. Sylvia Garcia easily won her party’s primary, and the way this district is gerrymandered all but guarantees she’ll win the November election. Still, on the Republican side, consultant Phillip Aronoff and former television anchor Carmen Maria Montiel face each other in a runoff. Aronoff ’s long resume peppered with various positions in politics and government — for example, he was chairman of the State Purchasing and General Services Commission, he served on the Harris County Housing Authority and he was president of Houston’s public access television station — makes him the more qualified candidate.
Democrats
United States Representative, District 7: Lizzie Pannill Fletcher
Democrats have a serious chance of knocking Republican Congressman John Culberson out of the seat he has occupied since 2001. The 7th Congressional District encompasses some of the Houston area’s wealthiest neighborhoods, from West University Place and Bellaire to flood ravaged subdivisions in west and northwest Harris County. What was once the safely Republican district represented by George H.W. Bush was won by Hillary Clinton in the last presidential election. That caught the attention of seven Democrats who ran in a spirited primary. Now attorney Lizzie Pannill Fletcher and freelance writer Laura Moser face each other in a hotly contested runoff.
Fletcher is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate who edited the William and Mary Law Review, a former Vinson & Elkins attorney who later became the first woman partner at another 50-person litigation firm. Her professional credentials and connections present the Houston model of business-friendly cosmopolitanism that used to be the hallmark of local Republicans. That George H.W. Bush-James Baker model has been abandoned by the Trump crowd and now Democrats like Fletcher are starting to claim the political territory as their own.
Her longtime history of involvement in both the corporate world and local nonprofits offers an appeal to crossover voters yearning to hear the voice of a real Houstonian up in Washington.
Early voting in the primary runoffs begins Monday, May 14, and continues through Friday, May 18. Election Day is the following Tuesday, May 22. Even if you didn’t vote in the March primary, you can vote in the runoff. But if you did vote in a party’s primary, you can’t switch parties for the runoff. You can find more information at HarrisVotes.com.