With 88 precinct chairs ultimately deciding who will be the Democratic candidate on the Nov. 5 ballot running to replace the late Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee, their responses to the Aug. 10 District 18 Candidates Forum are critical.
Though nearly 20 individuals are said to be running for the Congressional District 18 seat, only seven were on the stage at the recent forum. Those included former Houston mayor Sylvester Turner, former Houston City Council member Amanda Edwards, State Rep. Jarvis Johnson, State Rep. Christina Morales, Robert Slater (Houston chef and entrepreneur), Corisha Rogers (activist) and Cortlan Wickliff (associate vice provost of academic affairs at Rice University).
Here are some of the responses from the precinct chairs following the forum.
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PRECINCT CHAIR POST-FORUM REFLECTIONS
Lloyd Gauthier, Precinct Chair 660 , sighted voter suppression, including voter ID laws, as a top priority he was to see the next CD 18 representative confront.
He also appreciated the mix of “young” and “old” voices.
“The thing that stood out the most to me was the diversity of approaches the candidates have for problems that the community is facing right now. I think part of that is you had good inclusion with the youth there. The youth bring a different perspective, different experiences. You also had those that we know of, like Mayor Turner who has a lot of experience. So, I think the combination of that was really just invigorating.”
Gauthier, who is supporting Johnson, says it’s a toss-up for his number two pick between Edwards and Turner, “in case of a run-off.”
Evans Enwerem, Precinct Chair 1060 , was hoping to hear more from the candidates than she did during the forum.
“The only thing that stood out for me was education because in my community the education standard is down the drain,” said Enwerem. “Also, I was looking for something more than that like the cost of housing and living, because young ones and first-time homebuyers can’t afford to buy a house anywhere within District 18.”
Coming to the forum, Enwerem had four candidates in mind that she considered voting for. After the forum, two topped her list: Johnson and Turner.
Mardie Paige, Precinct Chair 195 (Independent Heights), said most of the candidates knew what they were talking about and they had done their research.
She then added: “But it’s a little bit more to it than doing your research. It’s having feet on the ground. It’s having been in my precinct, being in others’ precincts during disasters. Being seen doing the work. Anybody can spout anything, but you have to do the work.”
Paige, who is looking for a candidate who can work “across the aisle” and work with Republicans to get things done, has not decided who she will support for the position.
“I have not received confirmation from my ministers. I’m not in this by myself. I have not received confirmation from my Super Neighborhood Council. It’s my vote. I’m going to vote my conscience. But I cannot openly say I support one person or the other person at this particular point. Because I’m going to have to take what the community says under advisement.”
ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS
The forum allowed the seven participating candidates to answer a barrage of questions. However, as the Defender recently reported, the event actually raised several questions. Here are some additional questions spurred on by the forum.
Is this precinct chair system the best, most democratic way to choose a candidate?
Melanie Miles Bazil, one of the event’s main organizers, thought the event critical to give residents a chance to hear directly from candidates.
“We knew that the people of Houston, and particularly Congressional District (CD) 18 had to have more involvement in this process than just the precinct chairs, which I am a part of that too. But the precinct chairs just deciding without the public actually getting a chance to hear from these candidates, a political forum is the best way to do so,’ said Bazil. “It’s so important because, when you think about it, this candidate could possibly represent us for maybe the next 20 years. We don’t know. And there’s so many issues that are important here in CD 18, whether it’s crime or infrastructure or economic development here in the district. Whatever the issue is, we want to make sure that we have some kind of opportunity for the public to vet these candidates and express to the precinct chairs that represent them who they would like to see in this position”
Though the vast majority of forum attendees lauded the process, Lister thought it fell woefully short.
Lister voted for Edwards when she ran against Jackson Lee for the CD 18 seat, hoping to see a new injection of youth and leadership. But when that didn’t happen, followed by the nearly 20 persons entering the race for that seat after Jackson Lee’s death, Lister had questions.
“Where were all these people to get my vote Initially? So, I don’t get the opportunity now to vote in that primary. That’s kind of disheartening. That’s why I’m here, to not only see who could potentially [win the seat]… but to also voice my disapproval in this whole process.”
When the issue of general voter apathy and low voter turnout was mentioned during the forum, Johnson pointed out that of the 88 District 18 precinct chairs who will collectively decide who will be the Democratic Party’s candidate for U.S. Representative, only about 30 were present at the forum to hear directly from the candidates on program.
Which is most important: experience or the youthful energy of new voices?
A topic consistently raised by candidates was the issue of seniority/experience versus new ideas and U.S. Congressional term limits to allow for fresh faces to sit in the halls of Congress.
There was no definitive answer here either. From those interviewed and the responses from the candidates on the forum stage, there appeared to be a slight edge of roughly 55% to 45% in favor of valuing experience and relationships as the best route to getting things done for the next representative for CD 18.
But the cry for the longtime “usual suspects” of area political representation to “move; get out the way,” was loud, and met with noticeable approval from many forum attendees.
To little surprise, the event’s three youngest candidates (Rogers, Slater and Wickliff) supported term limits and vocalized the critical nature of new ideas and new leadership.
Who is the front-runner for the position per the individuals questioned?
From attendees asked after the forum, there was no clear-cut leader. The names most mentioned as favored candidates were Edwards, Turner and Johnson.
