A race for an unexpired at-large Houston City Council seat pits a former elected official who is already well-known in the community against a progressive young attorney focused on social justice issues and poised to make a name for herself.
Former Houston City Council member Dwight Boykins and Alejandra Salinas were the top two vote-getters in the November 4 election, a crowded race with 14 candidates. Salinas had a slight edge, earning about 2,000 more votes than Boykins.
Early voting in the runoff begins Monday, December 1. Election Day is December 13.
The winner will fill the unexpired term of Letitia Plummer, who resigned her At-Large Position 4 council seat to run for county judge. The term extends through January 1, 2028. Houston City Council members earn about $67,000 per year, and the positions are (supposed to be) nonpartisan. Boykins and Salinas have both said they are Democrats.
“I know infrastructure, and when your street needs to be fixed, you ain’t asking, Are you a Republican or a Democrat?” Boykins told the Houston Press last week.
Boykins, a lobbyist and consultant, represented District D — including the Museum District, Third Ward and Sunnyside — from 2014 to 2019 and made an unsuccessful bid for mayor against the late Sylvester Turner in 2019.
The candidate said he’s the most qualified person in the race, with a proven track record.
“I’m not a politician; I’m a public servant,” he said. “When I ran for District D, I told people I was going to do four things.”
The four things — all of which he says he accomplished — were to address the food desert issue in his district, create a Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone, initiate a second chance job fair program and help senior citizens with free home repairs.
He secured federal dollars to bring two grocery stores, including an H-E-B, to his district and created the District D TIRZ, intended to use tax increment within the zone for infrastructure and beautification projects. Boykins was criticized on the campaign trail by third-place candidate Jordan Thomas, who said the District D TIRZ was “the most corrupt in the city,” but he dismissed those claims and said Thomas didn’t know what he was talking about.
Boykins partnered with local businesses to offer “background-friendly” job fairs and helped repair more than 600 homes. “If I tell you I’m going to do something, I am going to do as much as I can to complete it,” he said.
Salinas’ supporters say that just because she hasn’t served in an elected position doesn’t mean she can’t do it better than someone who has. Linda Morales, a Latina LGBTQ+ advocate, said after a Harris County Democratic Party debate last week that Salinas is the only candidate “truly prepared to lead.”
“On issue after issue, Alejandra delivered facts, solutions and a forward-looking vision,” Morales wrote on social media. “From upgrading our aging water infrastructure, to demanding real transparency from HPD, to standing firmly as a true Democrat who shares our values, Alejandra was the clear winner.”
Salinas, a partner at Susman Godfrey LLP, raised more funds than Boykins, often an indicator of who will emerge victorious, but the unexpired council term isn’t a big money race, and low turnout is likely.
About 440,570 people cast ballots on November 4, representing 16 percent of Harris County’s registered voters. The voter participation was the second-highest turnout for an odd-year election in 25 years, said County Clerk Teneshia Hudspeth.
Last month’s election featured 17 constitutional amendments and a hotly contested race between former Houston City Council member Amanda Edwards and Harris County Attorney Christian Menefee. The only items on the December 13 ballot are the Houston City Council runoff and another runoff election for Houston City College trustee.
Both candidates have been block walking and attending public events. The day after the election, Salinas hosted a luncheon with Texas Defender Service featuring Piper Kerman, the author of Orange is the New Black.
Salinas has been endorsed by the Texas Gulf Coast Area Labor Federation AFL-CIO, Houston Federation of Teachers, Harris County Tejano Democrats, Harris County Young Democrats and the LGBTQ+ Victory Fund. State Rep. Christina Morales and Houston City Councilman Mario Castillo hosted a fundraiser for Salinas on November 16.
“We’re in a runoff with a fantastic candidate and we have to get across the finish line,” Castillo said at last month’s event. “I will tell you from experience, we need qualified leaders on city council, and we have the best qualified candidate right here in front of us in Alejandra Salinas. Not only has she been working really hard to get here, she has a proven track record of fighting for all types of communities and all types of people, and winning and getting results.”
Critics of Salinas say she’s inexperienced and that she talks a lot about President Donald Trump and Houston Police Department’s cooperation with federal immigration agents — things a city council member has limited control over. To be fair, she gets asked a lot about Trump and the local ICE presence. She has also promised voters that, if elected, she’ll advocate for the removal of state-appointed Houston ISD Superintendent Mike Miles.
The candidate has frequently mentioned in public appearances that she had a relative who, despite being a U.S. citizen, was detained by ICE for several hours, and she believes the council can explore local policies that limit ICE enforcement.
Salinas came out on live TV during the Democratic National Convention in 2012 and has said she’d be willing to revisit the Houston Equal Rights Ordinance if the community wants that. Houston HERO was proposed but ultimately defeated in 2015 and would have banned discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. Boykins voted against it.
Although social issues are at the forefront of voters’ minds — based on the questions that have been submitted at public forums — Salinas hasn’t shied away from topics like affordability and flood resilience.
“No matter who we are or what part of town we live in, we all deserve better roads, safer neighborhoods, more flood protection and an affordable city with good-paying jobs,” she said on November 5 after the final votes were tallied.
Salinas got her start in politics as a high school student, organizing a walkout against President George Bush’s federal immigration bill that “was going to be harmful to my community.” She later worked as an organizer for President Barack Obama. As an attorney, she said, she’s won lawsuits against companies that have used “unjust practices.”
Salinas represented Hudspeth and County Judge Lina Hidalgo “when Republicans tried to invalidate our election in 2022.”
“I know how to fight, and I’m going to fight for each and every one of you on day one at City Hall to make sure all Houstonians, no matter who we are or where we come from, live in a world-class city,” Salinas said. “My priorities are affordable and reliable city services, trying to get the basics right at the city, stronger infrastructure and making the investments we need to make sure our homes are hard and protected from floodwaters.”
“When it comes to public safety, giving law enforcement the resources they need, more mental health resources, more job corps resources, more drug rehabilitation resources: giving people a real chance to succeed rather than just penalizing them for the circumstances they’re in,” she added.
Boykins was on the council during Hurricane Harvey in 2017 and said he personally organized tree removal and trash pickup for senior citizens when city services were delayed.
“When I was on city council, a lady came up and was complaining about the trash outside her house, and she started crying,” Boykins said. “It got my attention. Mayor Turner wouldn’t say when it would be picked up. I got up from the council table, went home and changed and got in my pickup truck and picked up the trash myself.”
His mission for the near future, he said, is to get the East Water Purification Plant renovated or rebuilt.
“If it ever goes down, 70 to 80 percent of the water we get comes from the East plant,” he said. He also wants to rebuild infrastructure and fund projects throughout the city “to make sure that no communities are discriminated against.”
Boykins is backed by former Mayor Lee Brown; Harris County Commissioner Tom Ramsey, Fort Bend County Commissioner Grady Prestage; Texas Reps. Senfronia Thompson, Alma Allen and Ron Reynolds; former U.S. Rep. Beto O’Rourke; and current Mayor Pro Tem Martha Castex-Tatum, among others.