April Towery

Debriefing the Harris County Primaries - Houston Press Harris County political party officials say Tuesday's primaries went well but there's room for improvement.

“If there was anything that didn’t go well, it had to do with tension between the two parties. The problems had nothing to do with this being a non-joint election.” - Harris County Republican Party Chair Cindy Siegel

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Harris County Judge Nominees Will Be Decided in Runoffs - Houston Press Runoffs for the Republican and Democratic parties, set for May 26, will decide the nominees for Harris County judge.

"Now it’s just a matter of keeping the campaign going. I don’t see any way my remaining opponent can catch up.” - Harris County judge candidate Annise Parker, who is headed to a May 26 runoff for the Democratic nomination against Letitia Plummer

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KP George Ousted from Fort Bend County Judge's Seat - Houston Press Daniel Wong secured the GOP nomination for Fort Bend County judge, and Democrats Dexter McCoy and Rachelle Carter are headed to a runoff.

Fort Bend County Democrats will have to vote again in May to choose their county judge nominee in a runoff, but one thing is clear: residents from both parties don’t want to return embattled Judge KP George to commissioners court for a third term. 

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Harris County Election Wasn't Flawless But Dallas Did Worse - Houston Press Harris County election officials said Tuesday's no widespread major problems were reported in Tuesday's primaries.

As Harris County’s 280 polling places began closing up shop Tuesday night, officials from the county clerk’s office said they received reports of primary voters waiting in long lines, but no widespread problems with technology or people being turned away.

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Judge Rules Some Texas Schools Can Keep DEI Clubs For Now - Houston Press A district judge ruled that Houston, Katy and Plano ISDs can continue meeting in LGBTQ+ and other DEI groups that were banned by state law.

“We’re seeing an escalated attempt of conservative state legislatures to pass draconian laws that target vulnerable populations. Texas is not the only one but Texas certainly keeps us busy.” - Dale Melchert, attorney for Transgender Law Center

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Texas School Boards Must Vote on Prayer By March 1 - Houston Press A new state law requires Texas school Board's to take a recorded vote on whether to add a prayer period during each school day.

“Our schools should dedicate their limited time and resources to instruction and leave the religious instruction to families and houses of worship." - Kristi Gross, ACLU of Texas

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How Will Houston Be Remembered As a Host of the World Cup? - Houston Press Over concerns about traffic and immigration enforcement, organizers are preparing for the FIFA World Cup to converge on Houston this summer.

"We’re going to put on a great show and make Houston shine for the rest of the world.” - Patti Smith, #FIFAWorldCup Houston Fan Festival organizer

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Attorneys for Midwife Sued by Paxton Say Where's the Evidence? - Houston Press A Waller midwife sued by Attorney General Ken Paxton is appealing the injunction that prompted her three clinics to close.

“This baseless lawsuit really has destroyed Maria’s life." - Marc Hearron, interim associate director for litigation, Center for Reproductive Rights

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Poll Points to Parker As the Next Harris County Judge - Houston Press No surprises here: A new poll shows former Houston Mayor Annise Parker is the likely Democratic nominee for Harris County judge.

“I would say Annise Parker is sitting in the driver’s seat ... but with the quirky turnout patterns, you can’t be certain." - University of Houston political science lecturer Nancy Sims

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Early Voting For Primaries Starts Today - Houston Press Early voting begins today and continues through February 27 in the GOP and Democratic primaries. Election Day is March 3.

"This is literally life or death. We have got to have different leadership in Texas.” - Lieutenant Governor candidate Vikki Goodwin

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When ICE Hits Home for Kids - Houston Press Houston youth have staged many peaceful protests in recent weeks to speak out against ICE and Trump's immigration policies.

“So many of us young people have this political rage inside of us and it’s so hard to find where to target it. Having peaceful demonstrations is honestly one of the best opportunities we have to express ourselves.” - HISD student Anita

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Can KP George Get Re-Elected Amid Scandal? - Houston Press With 10 candidates in the Fort Bend County judge's race, a political expert says it's unlikely incumbent KP George will emerge victorious amid a scandal.

University of Houston political science professor Brandon Rottinghaus told the Houston Press this week that “KP George is probably not going to win,” but that has more to do with his party switch than the pending legal matters. 

www.houstonpress.com/news/can-kp-...

JP Hopeful Promises Virtual Court Hearings - Houston Press Davis Mendoza Darusman says if elected as a Harris County justice of the peace, he'll ensure that virtual court is available to all residents.

“These JP courts, I believe, are the frontlines of the homelessness crisis and the housing crisis, especially in Houston. There’s no reason why we shouldn’t be offering these solutions.” - Davis Mendoza Darusman

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Monitor CenterPoint Projects With New Dashboard - Houston Press CenterPoint Energy's new Community Progress Tracker allows customers to check on utility upgrades by neighborhood or ZIP code.

Remember when CenterPoint Energy said it was going to install 56,000 new storm-resilient transmission poles? Customers can now check an online dashboard to see where those upgrades occurred and what projects are in the works for their neighborhoods. 

www.houstonpress.com/news/monitor...

Cy-Fair ISD’s Banned Textbook Chapters Restored - Houston Press Cypress-Fairbanks ISD trustees voted Monday to restore textbook chapters that were banned by a previous board.

The newly elected progressive trustees at Cypress-Fairbanks ISD did what they said they would do when they were on the campaign trail last fall and, in a split vote Monday night, agreed to restore textbook chapters that were banned in 2024. 

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Give a Boy a Bat and a Two-Hour School Day  - Houston Press AI schools, where kids learn core curriculum for two hours per day, are gaining popularity in Houston.

“The traditional educational model is really inefficient and wastes a lot of the kids’ time." - Brandi Dowell, co-founder of The Bennett School

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Cy-Fair ISD’s $1.6 Billion Bond is Off the Table for May - Houston Press Cy-Fair ISD leaders announced Thursday that they won't be calling a bond election for May.

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"We heard a lot from our customers about their frustrations and we’ve been laser-focused on re-earning our customers’ trust and meeting their expectations. In our minds, one outage is too many.” - Nathan Brownell, PE, CenterPoint Energy

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Come for the Tailgate, Leave with a Free Puppy - Houston Press Best Friends Animal Society is offering free puppy adoptions at a Puppy Bowl tailgate party on Super Bowl Sunday.

If watching adorable puppies chase toy footballs is more appealing than cheering for the Seahawks or the Patriots this Super Bowl Sunday, Best Friends Animal Society has it covered. 

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Blocking Public Streets to Deter Crime Along Bissonnet - Houston Press A Houston City Council member is barricading public streets in an effort to deter crime along the Bissonnet Track.

"It was one of Houston’s most notorious streets but it was also internationally known as a hub for prostitution and trafficking. We wanted to shut that down.” - Houston City Councilman Edward Pollard

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Christian Menefee Will Focus on Opposing Trump’s Agenda - Houston Press Christian Menefee was elected Saturday to fill the unexpired term of the late Sylvester Turner in Texas' 18th Congressional District.

“I will fight each and every day to impeach [Homeland Security Secretary] Kristi Noem, to tear ICE up from the roots and to fix this country’s broken immigration system.” - Congressman-elect Christian D. Menefee

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Another Cold Weekend is in the Forecast  - Houston Press Meteorologists are predicting another cold weekend in Houston, with potentially freezing temperatures but no ice or snow.

Houston meteorologists agree that bone-chilling temperatures will return Saturday and Sunday, but due to a lack of precipitation, the dangerous roadways and threat of mass power outages that existed last weekend aren’t expected to make a repeat performance. 

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Could Minneapolis ICE Shootings Happen in Houston? - Houston Press Dissatisfaction with the Trump administration is mounting in the wake of two Minneapolish shootings of American citizens by federal agents.

"They will shoot you just for being in the wrong place at the wrong time.” - Katy resident Marsha Kamish on ICE incidents in Minneapolis

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Charles Thompson Executed 28 Years After Harris County Murders - Houston Press Charles Thompson was executed by lethal injection Wednesday night after spending almost three decades on Texas Death Row.

“I sincerely hope that he’s made it right with God and that he’s not somewhere burning in hell.” - Wade Hayslip on the execution of the man convicted of his mother's murder 28 years ago

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Early Voting Extended in District 18 Runoff  - Houston Press A judge ruled Monday that early voting hours would be extended to Wednesday and Thursday to in the Congressional District 18 runoff election.

“At TCRP, we believe that everyone should vote and it should be as accessible as possible." - Karla Maradiaga, Texas Civil Rights Project

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CenterPoint is Staying Ready for Tonight's Freeze - Houston Press CenterPoint Energy is winding down its Winter Storm Fern emergency response efforts as one more night of freezing temperatures is expected.

While Houstonians will see a reprieve from freezing temperatures Monday afternoon, the “bone-chilling cold” weather is slated to return around 8 p.m.

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Lawsuit Filed to Extend Early Voting in District 18 Runoff  - Houston Press Two Houston nonprofits are demanding two more early voting days ts in the Congressional District 18 election to compensate for weather closures.

"Folks in TX-18 have already gone nearly a year without a voice in Congress. We shouldn’t have to settle for just five days to vote early in such an important election.” - Christian D. Menefee, candidate for U.S. Congress

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Winter Storm Fern Hits Houston - Houston Press About 5,000 CenterPoint customers lost power Sunday morning due to Winter Storm Fern but crews are working swiftly to restore outages.

“We won’t stop until everyone’s power service is restored.” - Nathan Brownell, PE, CenterPoint Energy

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Warming Centers Offer Shelter as Temps Take a Dive - Houston Press Bayland Community Center offered a warming shelter on Saturday for people seeking respite from the arctic freeze.

“It’s going to be a sad night tonight. A lot of people are going to lose everything. A lot of people are going to lose their lives.” 

www.houstonpress.com/news/warming...

A Scramble for Supplies as Winter Storm Fern Approaches - Houston Press Houston residents made a mad dash for supplies on Friday ahead of Winter Storm Fern.

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