InsideOut at City Hall

by Annise D. Parker

PARTY TIME

On election day, crucial races up and down the ballot revive two-party system

Remember when you had to sneak in endorsement cards on election day or copy a card by hand so you could openly display a list and make intelligent choices for local judges on page 30? That was when we had a two-party system with candidates from both parties. The endorsement cards almost disappeared because Republican candidates refused to seek any GLBT endorsements under pressure from their party. By the time we won the right to carry endorsement cards into the polls, we didn't need them because so many local judicial candidates no longer had opponents.

Record numbers of Harris County voters developed bad habits-straight party or blind voting. Some frustrated, lifelong GLBT Democrats began voting in the Republican primary so they would have a choice of judicial candidates. (They chose to vote against the right-wingers.)

Other Democrats stubbornly clung to the two-party principle. They popped their voting pin into the hopeless hole next to the rare Democrat's name, then hovered defiantly over the names of each and every unopposed Republican candidate as if that vibrating pin could trigger an avalanche of votes away from the inevitable victor. Many voters just gave up at page 10 after the big contested races.

On Tuesday, November 5, we are going to have a real election again, all the way down the ballot. I want to spotlight a few local races, starting at the end of the ballot.

HISD BONDS

At the end of the ballot, voters will encounter a choice for $808.6 million in Houston Independent School District bonds. Straight-ticket voting will not cast a vote on this issue.

I strongly support the HISD bond issue because it includes much-needed repairs and school construction in a fast-growing district. Many HISD schools are in deplorable condition. The overwhelming approved 1998 bond issue was completed on time and under budget, but it addressed only one-third of the renovation needs outlined in an engineering study. For more information about the bond issue, check out www.houstonisd.org/HISD/portal/article/front/0,2435,20856_18784,00.html.

NIGHT AND DAY CHOICES

Regardless of party affiliation, GLBT voters need to consider the following candidates. There is a tremendous difference between these candidates and their opponents.

Garcia and Patronella. Almost as far back on the ballot are the county commissioner and justice of the peace contests. Sylvia Garcia has a good chance of becoming the first Hispanic and the first female elected to the court and only the second woman to serve. She needs every possible vote to defeat a former Pasadena mayor for County Commissioner Precinct 2. Garcia has been a strong city controller, and few office holders can match her for hard work.

Justice of the Peace David Patronella (Precinct 1, Place 2) was the highest-rated judge in the recent Houston Bar Association poll with a 97-percent approval rating. His opponent, with a 27-percent approval rating, is counting on Republican straight-ticket voting and voter apathy in down-ballot issues. We must not let this happen to a well-respected JP and strong supporter of our community.

Danburg and Hochberg. Redistricting has forced numerous Democratic state representatives into tough races. State reps Debra Danburg (District 134) and Scott Hochberg (District 137) are two of the best and most influential legislators and have been two of our strongest supporters in Austin. Care to guess why they were targeted? Losing either one of them would be disastrous for our community. Both deserve our all-out support.

Bell. Let's send Chris Bell to Washington. The former City Council member wants to continue serving Houstonians by using his considerable legislative and personal skills to represent the 25th Congressional District. He has a strong gay-rights track record, which includes a vote for the city's nondiscrimination ordinance.

Judges. Only four states-Texas, West Virginia, Louisiana, and Alabama-still elect their judges in partisan contests. Attorneys hate the system. A recent poll showed that 83 percent of Texans also oppose it. Can anyone be proud of some of the totally unqualified judges that have been swept into office, especially on the state's highest courts, by straight-ticket voting? This practice has embarrassed Republicans in the last few elections, but Democrats used to send their share of bozos to the bench when they had the majority. Blindly voting for a judge who will make life-and-death decisions is reprehensible.

ADVANCE WORK

A little research can help you select the most qualified candidates. Seek out endorsement cards from the Houston Gay & Lesbian Political Caucus (www.hglpc.com ), the National Women's Political Caucus (www.nwpc.org) or other groups you respect. Unfortunately, all Republican judicial candidates continue to boycott the GLBT endorsing groups.

Read the Houston Chronicle endorsements (www.chron.com) as well as its election guide and other guides published by the League of Women Voters (available at libraries), the Houston Bar Association (www.hba.org), and the Planned Parenthood Action Fund (www.plannedparenthoodvotes.org). Attend candidate forums.

VOLUNTEER AND VOTE

If you have just a few hours before election day, please volunteer for a campaign. Then vote on November 4. This is the first time for complete electronic voting with the county's new machines. If you know your candidates and want to vote straight ticket with a few exceptions, just vote straight ticket then go back and select individual candidates of the other party. Election-day poll workers will be glad to demonstrate the e-slate device for you.

Here are a few helpful numbers and websites:

• Houston Gay & Lesbian Political Caucus. 713/521-1000, www.hglpc.com

• County election information: www.cclerk.hctx.net/elect.htm

• Electronic e-slate voting: www.harrisvotes.org/howto.htm

• Harris County Democratic Party: www.hcdp.org/index.html

• Harris County Republican Party: www.harriscountygop.com

Campaigns:

• Chris Bell: (713) 664-1200, www.chrisbellforcongress.com

• Debra Danburg: 713/520-8068, www.votedanburg.com

• Sylvia Garcia: 713/228-9922, www.sylviagarciacampaign.com

• Scott Hochberg: 713/660-7783, www.scotthochberg.com

• David Patronella: 713/528-9990.

A Houston City Council member who happens to be lesbian, Annise Parker is serving her third term in At-large Position 1. Call or e-mail to receive her bi-monthly newsletter, 713/247-2014 or annise.parker@cityofhouston.net. Her website is www.ci.houston.tx.us/citygovt/council/1.