The city of Houston and state of Texas are never short on news, whether good, bad, or ugly. Here are the top local and state happenings in 2025.
1. Texas Redistricting Drama Goes National
Efforts to redraw Texas Congressional maps had a ripple effect that reverberated across the country. Texas House Democrats broke quorum, bringing even more national attention to the issue. You couldn’t turn on national cable news without seeing local lawmakers being interviewed and sharing their perspective on the issue. Other GOP states pledged to follow Texas’s lead. As a result, several Democrat-leaning states (California and Illinois, for example) jumped into the redistricting race. A three-panel federal court out of El Paso said the Texas redistricting map was/is racist as hell, and cannot be used. But in response to Texas Governor Greg Abbott and Lt. Governor Dan Patrick taking this to the SCOTUS, the U.S. Supreme Court sided with the racist maps. And these national efforts were implemented locally. Fort Bend County joined in on GOP redistricting efforts, with help from the federally indicted K.P. George, switching political parties, moving from the Dems to the GOP.
2. District 18 Drama
Certainly, Texas redistricting had an impact on the District 18 race. But even without the redistricting saga, the goings-on in District 18 would still be huge news. Residents of District 18 have been without representation for nearly an entire year. Some of the biggest names in local politics have been involved, seeking to lay claim to one of the nation’s most historic and significant congressional seats. Houston’s former mayor, Sylvester Turner, held the seat for a brief two months before his passing. Rising political stars Amanda Edwards and Christian Menefee, along with local and nationally known Jolanda Jones, joined a field of 16 vying for the seat. Redistricting threw a monkey wrench into things, as Al Green lost his constituents, as Texas GOP maps no longer have Green’s home in District 9. Hence, Green declared to run for the District 18 seat since that’s where the new maps place his home (which hasn’t moved). And now that the SCOTUS has sided with the racist maps, it’s official that Green will be running to represent District 18.
3. Bayou Bodies
Houston made national news for another reason, one that can be found in its nickname, the Bayou City. The body count of souls lost to Houston bayous in 2025 is enough in and of itself to cause local and national alarm. But the fact that there are so many questions unanswered about these tragic deaths, whether due to a lack of transparency on the part of the city and/or other factors, Houstonians are continuing to talk… and worried.
4. Project 2025 Local Impact
People say local politics impact people more than national politics. That may not be true anymore (if it was ever true). The Trump White House and its Project 2025 agenda had direct impacts on the quality of life for Houstonians. Trump tariffs impacted local businesses and consumers. Texas higher ed was busy mimicking the national crackdown on all things DEI. Section 8 changes are putting thousands at risk of becoming homeless. ICE raids are being welcomed, unlike in Dallas, where that city’s police chief emphatically rejected the collaboration. And Abbott even organized his own crew of ICE-like militarized law enforcement coming to visit Houston.
5. Housing and Homelessness
The twin issues of housing and homelessness seemed to be covered in the Defender every week during 2025. The City of Houston enacted new laws and policies regarding its homeless population. Those previously mentioned Section 8 changes have thousands worried about whether they and their families will have a roof over their heads by 2026. And at year’s end, residents of Cuney Homes were unsure about when and where they would relocate as plans to renovate Houston’s oldest public housing project were set to be initiated.
