» Moore wins runoff in Precinct 3 race.
Michael Moore, a former Houston mayoral chief of staff, appeared to defeat educator Diana Alexander in the Democratic primary runoff for the Precinct 3 seat on Harris County Commissioners Court, putting him in position to face Republican Tom Ramsey in November.
With all but a handful of Harris County voting centers reporting shortly after 11 p.m., Moore had maintained a double-digit lead over Alexander after staking out a wide advantage through early voting. Moore also won more than two-thirds of absentee votes, according to unofficial results from the county clerk’s office.
The Precinct 3 seat long has been occupied by Commissioner Steve Radack, a Republican who opted not to seek a ninth term this year. Long seen as a Republican stronghold, the sprawling 464square-mile precinct has attracted the attention of Harris County Democrats who believe it is ripe to be flipped this year amid favorable national conditions and the precinct’s changing demographic makeup.
Moore, who served as former Houston mayor Bill White’s chief of staff, vastly outspent Alexander in the runoff and garnered most of the endorsements from Houston elected officials. Alexander finished first in the six-candidate March primary, finishing about half a percentage point ahead of Moore.
Ramsey, the mayor of Spring Valley Village, faced two opponents in the March Republican primary and collected more than 70 percent of the vote.
Democrats currently control a 3-2 majority on commissioners court, though Radack and Republican Jack Cagle last year thwarted
Democrats’ attempts to pass a property tax hike by denying them the four-person quorum needed to approve tax increases.
In other county races, state District Judge Alexandra SmootsThomas trailed Democratic runoff opponent Cheryl Elliott Thornton by a wide margin through early voting and most Election Day results. SmootsThomas was indicted on federal wire fraud charges in November over allegations that she spent campaign donations on personal expenses.
Precinct 2 Constable Chris Diaz, meanwhile, narrowly trailed Democratic runoff foe Jerry Garcia. Diaz has been accused of recruiting a second candidate named Jerry Garcia to run for the seat, pressuring employees to donate to his re-election campaign and punishing those who refused.
Democratic Precinct 3 Constable Sherman Eagleton held a wide lead over runoff opponent Ken Jones as of shortly after 11 p.m., while Democrat Mark Alan Harrison led runoff foe Randy Newman by double digits in the runoff for Precinct 5 constable. The winner will face GOP incumbent Ted Heap in November.
In the Republican primary runoffs, former deputy constable Joe Danna led Harris County Sheriff ’s patrol deputy Paul Day in the race to decide who will take on Sheriff Ed Gonzalez.