Fueled by midterms, candidates under 30 set eyes on City Council

When she first ran for City Council in 2009 at age 24, Amy Peck became used to voters skeptical about her age.

At forums, Peck said, older candidates could come ill-prepared on policy matters and still win votes, while Peck — already on thin ice because of her youth — had no room for mistakes.

“I had to really learn all the issues and make sure there were no errors in anything that I said, because people were already very skeptical,” said Peck, who is chief of staff to District A Councilwoman Brenda Stardig.

Having lost twice to her boss, who cannot run again because of term limits, Peck is making a third try this year at the conservativeleaning District A seat, which covers parts of Spring Branch and northwest Houston.

At 34, Peck no longer is among the youngest cohort of City Council candidates, some of whom were in high school or younger when she first ran.

Inspired by the recent electoral success of millennial and Generation Z-aged candidates, more young people are running for City Council than ever before, a trend local politicos attribute to the potent national surge of activism stemming largely from President Donald Trump’s election in 2016.

In last year’s midterm election, many of those new, young activists ran for office and won. Since the

election, 29-year-old U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has become one of the Democratic Party’s most prominent voices, while locally Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo, 28, has led a dramatic political shift on Commissioners Court, which flipped to Democratic control for the first time in decades.

“I think we have to acknowledge the success in the 2018 cycle of millennials and very young candidates,” said education consultant Jay Aiyer, who served as former Mayor Lee Brown’s chief of staff at age 29.

A handful of candidates younger than 30 and at least a dozen more in their 30s are seeking seats this year on City Council, the legislative body for the country’s fourth-most populous city. Though council members have little formal power in Houston’s strong-mayor form of government, they approve an annual city budget north of $5 billion and handle constituent services for districts comprising around 200,000 residents.

Among the youngest contenders are Marcel McClinton, 18, a shooting survivorturned-activist running for one of five at-large positions; Anthony Dolcefino, 21, a candidate for District C; District D candidate Dennis Griffin, 24; and Anthony Nelson, 29, a Prairie View A&M University student running for District F.

Regardless of how the under-30 candidates fare, it is all but certain City Council will look younger once new members are sworn in next January, Aiyer said.

Among the departing, term-limited council members are Stardig, 57, District C Councilwoman Ellen Cohen, 78, and At-Large Councilman Jack Christie, 70.

Challenging incumbents

Those looking to retain their seats are facing stiff challenges from young candidates, who paint the incumbents as out of touch with the Houston electorate.

Raj Salhotra, 28, is one of three candidates challenging At-Large 1 Councilman Mike Knox, a former police officer who is seeking a second four-year term. Also running are Michelle Bonton and Georgia Provost.

Salhotra is calling for the city to offer universal prekindergarten and more public transit, enforce more regulations on “pollutant-emitting plants” and require all new city vehicles be hybrid or electric.

Meanwhile, Knox repeatedly has pushed for the city to rein in what he calls “frivolous spending” and to focus on core services — public safety, infrastructure, trash pickup.

Salhotra’s own policy views, he said, are rooted partly in his age.

“I think a lot about, how are the policies we put in place today affecting the next 30, 40, 50 years in Houston?” Salhotra said. “Because I’m going to be living here for the next 60 years of my life, God willing.”

Knox, 60, said many issues tainted with partisan labels, such as immigration, fall outside the jurisdiction of City Council.

“One of my opponents wants to make it an issue because he thinks he can ride a Democrat wave to City Council,” Knox said. “If his position is I’m out of touch with progressive liberal ideology, then he would probably be accurate.”

A similar, if not less overtly partisan, dynamic has begun to play out in the race for At-Large Position 3, where Michael Kubosh is defending his seat against Janaeya Carmouche, Gokulakrishnan Sankar and McClinton, the 18-year-old activist.

McClinton, who serves on the city’s Commission to Prevent Gun Violence, said reforming gun laws is his top issue, though he also advocates for universal pre-K.

McClinton chose to run against Kubosh, he said, “because I think that his values and morals don’t represent the majority of our city.” McClinton cited Kubosh’s opposition to an ordinance barring discrimination based on sexual orientation, race, ethnicity and other factors.

“I think Mr. Kubosh would have been a great rep back when Houston was really anti-gay, hated gay people, wanted black and brown folks to be locked up in prisons and fuel the bail bond industry,” McClinton said.

Kubosh rejected McClinton’s characterization of his views, citing his prior endorsement from the Log Cabin Republicans and his high electoral support in District C, home to a large LGBTQ population.

“I’m sad to hear he’s saying that, but if that’s the way he wants to get votes,” said Kubosh, 68. “I love everybody. I don’t dislike any group of voters.”

‘Ripple effect’

If the younger, there are several candidates in their 30s who have legitimate chances to win, Aiyer said.

The race for District C, which includes Montrose, Meyerland and Braeswood, has emerged as the most crowded contest: Thirteen people are running to succeed Cohen, who recently endorsed 32-year-old Abbie Kamin. Other candidates include Candelario Cervantez, 36, Nick Hellyar, 38, and the 21-year-old Dolcefino, son of former KTRK reporter Wayne Dolcefino.

“We’re living in a serious time, we’re at a critical juncture in this city, and certainly in the country, and it’s going to take everyone to be active and fighting — of all age groups,” Kamin said.

However young City Council skews next term, the decisions and policy focus at City Hall will flow through the mayor’s office. Still, Aiyer said, City Council seats sometimes act as a stepping stone for state and federal office, making the races significant.

“What you’re kind of seeing is a new generation of people locally getting involved in politics,” Aiyer said. “And the ripple effect can be significant, because these folks who get elected end up doing other things and so on down the road.”