Former Houston City Council member Amanda Edwards has announced she is suspending her campaign for the March 3 primary, even though her name will remain on the ballot.
In a social media post on Feb. 9, Edwards said she is stepping back from active campaigning but reaffirmed her commitment to community advocacy and voter registration.
She has not formally endorsed another candidate in the race and did not detail future electoral plans.
“Although my name will appear on the March 2026 Primary ballot, I have decided to suspend my campaign for Congress,” Edwards wrote. “My commitment to serving and advocating for the community remains unchanged…As we all know, too much is at stake to disengage from the fight for healthcare, economic stability, and our democracy. That is why I hope you will join me as I relaunch our Do Something Houston Voter Registration Initiative, so we can win the midterm elections and deliver for our community again.”
Edwards had positioned her campaign on expanding health care access and economic opportunities for Houstonians.
In her post, she reiterated that these priorities remain at the core of her public work, even if she is not actively campaigning for the 18th Congressional District seat.
March 3 ballot
In the March 3 primaries, Edwards’ name will be placed alongside Congressmen Al Green and Christian Menefee, and Gretchen Brown on the Democratic side. On the Republican side, voters will see Elizabeth Vences and Ronald Dwayne Whitfield on the ballot.
These candidates are seeking a full two-year term starting in January 2027.
They will be running for the 18th Congressional District redrawn by House Bill 4 during the 89th legislative session.
Texas’ mid-decade redistricting plans were signed into law in August 2025. The new maps were challenged in court and upheld for use in the 2026 elections.
Early voting for the March 3 elections begins Feb. 17.
What happened before this?
The 18th Congressional District had gone nearly a year without representation since the deaths of Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee and then Congressman Sylvester Turner.
Texas GOP Gov. Greg Abbott did not schedule the first round of voting until November 2025.
In the November 2025 special elections, Menefee, a former Harris County Attorney, and Edwards were the top two finishers among 16 candidates.
Both fell short of the 50% threshold. Edwards lost the special election to Menefee, garnering 25.6% of the vote, while Menefee received 28.9%.
Both candidates then headed to a runoff.
Menefee won the runoffs in January, receiving 68.4% of the vote compared to Edwards, who received 31.6% of the vote. He was sworn in on Feb. 2.
Since winning the Houston City Council At-large Position 4 in 2015, where she served from 2016 to 2020, Edwards ran for the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate in Texas in 2020 but lost.
She ran again in the 2024 Congressional District 18 March primaries, but lost to Sheila Jackson Lee.
Edwards also briefly ran in the 2023 Houston mayoral election but withdrew her candidacy.
Now, a new campaign round begins for the March 3 primaries under the new maps.
As the March 3 primary approaches, Edwards’ decision adds another unexpected turn to a race already reshaped by redistricting and a year of political upheaval in the 18th Congressional District.
