EARLY VOTING: Feb. 18-28
com/voterguide
Our recommendations for March 3 elections
President
DEMOCRAT
Sen. Amy Klobuchar. Being a
progressive, she says, means
you should make progress.
The third-term senator from
Minnesota has done so
through pragmatism and
bipartisanship, making her
one of the most effective
members of Congress. She
doesn’t just have strong
stances on guns, climate
change and economic oppor-
tunity, she can get them done.
Her secret sauce: electability
in November.
U.S. Senate
DEMOCRAT
Royce West. West, a 26-year
veteran of the Texas Senate,
promises that, if elected to the
U.S. Senate, he’d work with
the Republicans — even Cruz
— just as closely as he has in
Austin. He’s unabashedly a
moderate — but he’s also
been vocal when it matters on
issues of race, in defense of
public education, and — more
recently — gay rights.
U.S. House of
Representatives
DEMOCRAT
U.S. House District 2: Sima
Ladjevardian. A Houston
lawyer, political activist and
former Beto O’Rourke adviser,
Ladjevardian gives Democrats
a fighting chance to flip this
seat.
U.S. House District 8: Laura
Jones. Political newcomer
Jones is doing the work on the
ground in a challenging dis-
trict for Democrats.
U.S. House District 9: Al
Green. Best known nationally
as the first member of Con-
gress to present articles of
impeachment against Presi-
dent Donald Trump, in May
2017, the Houston congress-
man has not been shy about
speaking out. We do not al-
ways agree with his positions,
but we do admire his courage
to step out boldly for what he
believes in.
U.S. House District 10: Mike
Siegel. Democratic voters
have a difficult choice to
make, as the three candidates
in the race offer compelling
reasons why they should be
selected. Ultimately, Siegel’s
commitment to public service
and progressive policy posi-
tions earn our recommenda-
tion.
U.S. House District 18: Shei-
la Jackson Lee. As a 13-term
incumbent, she is a force in
the political landscape. She is
consistently ranked among
the most effective legislators
in Congress and knows how to
wield her high profile to get
things done.
U.S. House District 22: Sri
Preston Kulkarni. He seems
to prioritize civility and is open
to finding common ground
with those who differ from
him ideologically.
Supreme Court
DEMOCRAT
Chief Justice: Amy Clark
Meachum. Meachum is call-
| VOTERS GUIDE: HoustonChronicle.
PRINT ME OUT AND TAKE ME WITH YOU TO THE POLLS!
I
t’s here. Early voting in the March 3 Texas primaries begins Feb. 18 and ends Feb. 28. Over the
past few weeks, the Houston Chronicle Editorial Board has interviewed and researched doz-
ens of candidates, weighing such factors as incumbency, experience and accomplishments, to
assemble a list of recommendations we hope will guide voters through some tough choices. We
are the only nonpartisan group in the Houston area to provide this service.
ing for change in the court,
which has had all Republican
members since 1999, but she
is no flamethrower, nor an
ideologue.
Justice, Place 6: Larry
Praeger. Praeger brings sub-
stantial experience as an
appellate attorney.
Justice, Place 7: Brandy
Voss. Voss’s direct experience
with appellate law, a field in
which she is board certified,
convinces us she’d be the
sounder choice for Democrats
eager to break the Republican
Party’s decades-long hold on
the Supreme Court.
Justice, Place 8: Peter Kelly.
Kelly expertly grasps the nu-
ances of how Texas’ top civil
court works and how a new
justice can influence the law in
Texas.
Court of Criminal
Appeals
DEMOCRAT
Criminal Court of Appeals,
Place 3: Elizabeth Frizell. A
criminal defense attorney,
Frizell has also served as a
municipal court judge and
county family court judge.
Criminal Court of Appeals,
Place 4: Tina Clinton. Clin-
ton calls for more transparen-
cy and educational efforts to
better inform the public about
the decisions and workings of
the courts.
Railroad
Commission
DEMOCRAT
Railroad Commissioner:
Chrysta Castañeda. Casta-
ñeda’s experience will help
her balance the economic
concerns of the oil and gas
industry with the need to
protect the environment for all
Texans.
Texas Senate
DEMOCRAT
District 11: Susan Criss. She
is full of ideas for criminal
justice reform, mitigating flood
damage and making the work-
ings of the Legislature more
transparent.
District 13: Melissa Morris.
Although she is a political
neophyte and would have a
steep learning curve in the
Legislature, we were im-
pressed by her knowledge of
issues facing the district and
her desire to represent resi-
dents too often overlooked by
elected leaders.
Texas House of
Representatives
DEMOCRAT
House District 126: Natali
Hurtado. By building on les-
sons learned in the two years
since her first campaign for
this seat, Hurtado is well-
positioned to give Democrats
a chance of flipping it.
— The Houston Chronicle editorial board
House District 128: Josh
Markle. Markle was a staff
sergeant in the U.S. Air Force,
and his platform includes the
full gamut of core Democratic
issues — healthcare, educa-
tion, jobs and criminal justice
reform.
House District 131: Alma
Allen. Allen demonstrated
deep knowledge of the Leg-
islature where friendships
across the aisle and mastery
of procedures matter at least
as much as passion.
House District 134: Ann
Johnson. She speaks with
authority about a broad range
of issues and with the persua-
sive power of a former prose-
cutor.
House District 138: Akilah
Bacy. Her focus is on core
issues important to the voters
in her district: education,
healthcare, flooding, climate,
employment rights, restorative
justice.
House District 139: Jarvis
Johnson. He has been effec-
tive and busy in his three
terms representing this district
in the House.
House District 141: Senfronia
Thompson. A respected
veteran in the Texas House,
she has helped raise the state
minimum wage, passed hate-
crime legislation protecting
LGBT communities, and re-
formed the criminal justice
system.
House District 142: Harold V.
Dutton, Jr. His experience in
Austin and willingness to do
what he thinks is right, even if
unpopular, give him the edge.
House District 146: Shawn
Thierry. In her first two terms,
she has learned to navigate
effectively within the reality of
a Republican-controlled leg-
islature and under a Repub-
lican governor.
House District 147: Garnet
Coleman. A hard-working
veteran lawmaker who has
pursued legislation addressing
mental health and criminal
justice reform, including the
Sandra Bland Act requiring
jailers to immediately send
mentally ill inmates to a men-
tal health facility.
House District 148: Anna
Eastman. In eight years on
the Houston ISD board of
trustees, she proved herself
smart and committed to pro-
gressive policies.
State Board of
Education, District
6 Ann Harris Bennett: She’s an
DEMOCRAT
Michelle Palmer: Her years
as a teacher in area schools
including Aldine ISD and
Houston ISD have made her
familiar with curriculum issues
and will bring a rare perspec-
tive to the board: that of an
active teacher.
Harris County
Sheriff
DEMOCRAT
Ed Gonzalez: From taking a
bold stance in support of bail
reform to minimizing the use
of solitary confinement to
expanding vocational pro-
grams to women in the jail,
Gonzalez’s changes big and
small have prioritized public
safety as well as fairness and
the dignity of inmates.
Harris County
District Attorney
DEMOCRAT
Kim Ogg: Seeing justice is
done while reforming the
criminal justice system isn’t
easy. Ogg has drawn criticism,
including from us, but we
believe she’s charted the right Houston.
course overall. Her experience
far surpasses that of her op-
ponents and her integrity is
sound.
Harris County
Attorney
DEMOCRAT
Christian Menefee: Menefee
will bring needed energy,
attention to detail and fresh
perspective to the part of the
job that goes beyond serving
as a lawyer to county officials
and judges.
Harris County
Commissioner
Precinct 1
DEMOCRAT
Rodney Ellis: His work as
commissioner has continued
that of his trailblazing Texas
Senate career, with a focus on
public policy, such as bail
reform.
Harris County
Commissioner
Precinct 3
DEMOCRAT
Michael Moore: Moore is
well-versed in the intricacies
of issues and policies that
face county government.
Tax
Assessor-Collector**OSET**
and Voter
Registrar
DEMOCRAT
experienced administrator
who, despite stumbles, is
making progress on registering
voters and helping educate
taxpayers.
Judges
DEMOCRAT
1st Court of Appeals, Place
3: Dinesh Singhal. He has a
strong reputation for being
smart and experienced.
1st Court of Appeals, Place
5: Tim Hootman. A former
staffer on this court of ap-
peals, he has handled more
than 350 appeals including
arguing before the U.S. Su-
preme Court.
Chief of the 14th Court of
Appeals: Jane Robinson. She
has a solid reputation and is a
significant contributing editor
to the O’Connor’s Texas civil
court guide.
14th Court of Appeals Place
7: Wally Kronzer. He has ex-
tensive appellate court experi-
ence in state and federal
courts.
80th Harris County District
Court: Larry Weiman. Though
Weiman has been criticized for
stressing docket speed over
other issues, his reputation on
the bench is that he has integ-
rity and he has done reason-
ably well in bar polls.
164th Harris County District
Court: Grant J. Harvey. He’s a
highly regarded litigator who
has participated in numerous
trials and appeals. He has
practiced law for 30 years
including at one of the most
respected boutique firms in
165th Harris County District
Court: Megan Daic. Daic has
varied civil experience, teach-
es as an adjunct at UH law
school and has impressed
colleagues as being capable
of having the temperament to
handle the bench.
176th Harris County District
Court: Bryan Acklin. He has
been called even-tempered
and talented by colleagues on
both sides of the criminal
cases that this currently un-
der-performing court handles.
179th Harris County District
Court: Ana Martinez. Martinez
gained a sterling reputation as
a human trafficking prosecu-
tor before she became a de-
fense attorney.
333rd Harris County District
Court: Daryl Moore. He gets
wildly high marks on bar polls
and his reputation is that he is
thoughtful, intelligent, with an
even-handed approach to the
law and a great temperament.
334th Harris County District
Court: Steven Kirkland. His
reputation is that he is a good
judge with solid bar poll re-
sults.
337th Harris County District
Court: Colleen Gaido. She has
handled more than 50 crimi-
nal trials and is known for
understanding the realities of
all angles of a case.
339th Harris County District
Court: Te’iva Bell. Her rep-
utation in trial is superb
though not all her opponents
have liked going up against
her, which can be a good
thing.
351th Harris County District
Court: George Powell. Law-
yers who have practiced in his
court say he is thoughtful,
respectful and fair on the
bench.
507th Harris County District
Court: C.C. “Sonny” Phillips.
Colleagues expect Phillips will
bring fairness, clear policies
and organization to a court
that has fared poorly in recent
bar polls.