City Council

Several other races likely to go to runoffs as more than 100 candidates vie for 16 spots

Most incumbents hold sizable leads, though not all had enough to avoid a runoff.

Early returns from Tuesday’s election show most incumbents running for Houston City Council with sizable leads while multiple other races appear likely to be decided in runoffs next month.

All told, there were more than 100 candidates vying for council’s 16 spots, including eight incumbents. Council members are limited to two four-year terms.

Nearly all incumbent candidates had comfortable leads with early voting returns as of presstime, though not all had the majority of votes needed to avoid a runoff.

Mark Jones, a Rice University political science professor, said incumbents are unlikely to face serious challenges because voters do not typically pay as much attention to council races as they do the mayoral contests. Because of that, he said, name recognition may be enough to carry many current council members to victory.

“Most (voters) go into these council races with very limited information,” he said.

At-Large Councilman Mike Knox had a double-digit lead over his main challenger, former teacher and education nonprofit leader Raj Salhotra. Jones and other political experts said they expected Knox to win, but said the race may be a good barometer of how well young candidates such as Salhotra are able to drive their fellow millennials to the polls.

Two other incumbents in atlarge positions — David Robinson and Michael Kubosh — also had comfortable leads over their challengers, though Robinson did not have a majority of votes.

In the race for council’s fourth at-large position, Anthony Dolcefino had a slight lead. Dolcefino has made ethics reform a staple of his campaign. He is trailed by a few points by local business owner and doctor Letitia Plummer. The winner will replace Amanda Edwards, who announced in July that she is running for U.S. Senate.

Sallie Alcorn, a longtime City Hall staffer, was tied with Harris County Department of Education representative Eric Dick for the fifth at-large council race.

In District A, Amy Peck had a comfortable lead over the six other candidates vying to replace

Councilwoman Brenda Stardig. Peck is Stardig’s current chief of staff, and her campaign has focused in part on the experience that position has given her.

In District B, local organizer Tarsha Jackson had a slight lead over the 14-candidate field. Renee Jefferson Smith and Alvin Byrd trailed slightly in the race to replace current Vice Mayor Pro-Tem Jerry Davis.

In District C, civil rights attorney Abbie Kamin led 12 other candidates by double-digits. The winner would replace Mayor Pro-Tem Ellen Cohen.

District D’s race shows Carolyn Evans-Shabazz with a slight advantage among the top tier of the 15 other candidates running for that seat. The winner would replace Councilman Dwight Boykins, who is running for mayor.

District E Councilman Dave Martin appears likely to win reelection over his only challenger, conservative Sam Cleveland. The district includes Kingwood.

In District F, Tiffany Thomas, a former trustee of the Alief Independent School Board, had a double-digit lead over all others in the six-candidate field, though Thomas did not have a majority of votes.

District G Councilman Greg Travis appears likely to win a second term, leading his two challengers by more than 50 points.

In District H, incumbent Karla Cisneros also had a double-digit lead over her four challengers, though she did not have a majority of votes. Cisneros won her first term by about 10 points during a 2015 runoff, and political experts have said she may face the toughest challenge of any incumbent in this year’s election cycle. The remaining share of votes is split almost evenly between her two main challengers, Realtor Cynthia Reyes-Revilla and Isabel Longoria, a former city planning commissioner and legislative policy aide.

In District I, Councilman Robert Gallegos had more than double the votes of his only challenger, Richard Gonzales.

Three candidates are about even in the race for District J. Edward

Pollard, a nonprofit leader and former legislative aide, was slightly ahead of Sandra Rodriguez and Barry Curtis.

Martha CastexTatum, who currently represents District K, had a substantial lead over her two challengers.