02/18/2026
Harris County needs maturity, competence, and turnout
I say this a lot: "unsolicited advice is never received". Despite that I believe this to be true, I'm going to offer my two cents anyway.
I’m supporting former Houston Mayor Annise Parker for Harris County Judge, and I want to start with a truth that may surprise some people. I have personal experience disagreeing with Annise Parker. Not the kind of disagreement you debate over coffee. The kind that reminded me how complicated leadership is, and how easy it is for civic conversations to become personal instead of practical. That experience is exactly why I feel compelled to offer my opinion.
To be clear, I am not endorsing from proximity or personal benefit (I'm pretty sure she wouldn't take my call). I’m endorsing capacity for the job and readiness for the moment.
Harris County is too big, too complex, and too exposed to crisis for us to choose leadership based on perceptions and pride. The County Judge is not a symbolic role. It is an operational one. The position presides over Commissioners Court and, by law, serves as the county’s director of emergency management. When things go wrong, this office is where coordination becomes real.
This is where I want us to return to basics. We do not have the luxury of fighting for unnecessary wins just to protect our pride or defend that we think we are right. Harris County needs adults in the room. Adults ask, “What does the job require?” and “Who is prepared to deliver on day one?”
Experience matters, but not as a slogan. Experience matters because this job demands executive competence under pressure: managing complex systems, building governing coalitions, coordinating across agencies, and leading when the stakes are high and the timeline is short.
A University of Houston Hobby School poll released yesterday shows Parker leading the Democratic primary for Harris County judge, with 46% support to 25% for her closest challenger, and a meaningful share of voters still undecided. That undecided number tells me something important: many voters are still making up their minds, and they deserve an argument rooted in substance, not heat.
Here is my argument. Harris County’s next judge must be able to run meetings, set an agenda, build alignment, and move a large, complex institution toward measurable results. This is not an apprenticeship role. It’s not a reward for being popular. It’s the county’s executive seat. My support for Parker is not blind and if she wins I intend to hold her accountable.
My expectations are simple and public:
1. First, treat emergency management as a year-round discipline, not a seasonal headline (this includes flood mitigation for our most vulnerable communities).
2. Second, run Commissioners Court with discipline and transparency, because process is how outcomes happen.
3. Third, focus relentlessly on delivery, because regardless of the zip code, all residents should experience government as results.
But I also want to speak to something bigger than any single candidate. Harris County has a turnout problem. In elections that decide local leadership, participation is often low. That means too many decisions about our schools, our roads, our public safety, and our resilience are made by a relatively small slice of the county, while the rest watch from the sidelines and then argue about the outcome. That has to change.
Early voting runs from February 17 through February 27. Election Day is March 3. Vote, and then do one more thing: bring one voter with you. Remind your tribe. Offer the ride. Normalize participation.
Finally, a request that I hope becomes a habit in our civic culture. Let’s seek to understand before we rush to judge. Let’s stop trying to win arguments and start trying to win outcomes. Let’s do the right thing because it is the right thing, and because serving the greater good is the only kind of “win” that matters.
Harris County deserves leadership that can govern, and a community that shows up.
