Former Harris County Precinct 2 Commissioner Sylvia Garcia and State Senator Mario Gallegos unveiled an alternative Harris County Commissioners Court map to a group of 50 East End community members that Garcia asserts will “eliminate the only effective Latino opportunity precinct (Precinct 2) on the Commissioners Court”.
Before some of you BJP readers erupt in anger like Mt Vesuvius or Krakatoa over my use of the word “asserts”, I am not a demographer nor would I ever claim to be one. I use the word “assert” because I don’t possess the expertise to analyze the intended election outcome of this alternative map; and also because those are Sylvia’s words and not mine.
Here’s a copy of the map that was distributed to the meeting attendees yesterday morning and the accompanying data.
Drawn in conjunction with Texas Democratic Party counsel Chad Dunn and political consultant Robert Jara, the alternative map presents a better opportunity for East End Latinos to elect a Commissioner of their choice, according to the distributed talking points:
Harris County Redist Talking Points
I’ll leave the analysis of & additional comments on the alternative map, which I have no doubt will be presented to the public during the Commissioners Court redistricting hearings starting tomorrow July 25th and ending Monday August 1, to my friend Greg Wythe over at his blog. The Commissioners Court public redistricting hearings schedule is posted here; hope to see you in attendance.
So much for the notion of geographically compact districts based upon pre-existing naturaly and political boundaries. That precinct 4 is a joke, wrapping one precinct around half the county just to concentrate white vters in a GOP district and try to create a comeback opportunity for Sylvia.
I am not sure if the gerry mandering of any kind will prevent the inevitable, which is there will be at least one Hispanic member of the County Commissioner's Court after the next exlection cycle or two.
I live on the East Side and one would have to be a blind man not to see the demographic shift. I see the same shift all over Houston. The Harris County Republican Party had better start grooming some credible Hispanic Candidates or they will be rendered to an asterisk and a chuckle in time.
Simple
One of the most obvious gerrymanders is the division of Super Neighborhood 22, the Washington Ave corridor. It has been divided in this alternative map; parts in PCT 3, PCT 2 and PCT 1. One of SN 22's public safety issues, the parking overflow issue from commercial into residential areas, is the same public safety issue I have in my SN 60.
To Whom It May Concern:
I am a long time resident of Houston TX, District B and there is an upcoming election for a District B seat. Well, the air needs to be clear about a few issues. Its fair to say that Houston politician have had they’re share of scandal. Well I for one am tired of politicians lying and deceiving the public to get in office so they can benefit they’re own personal agenda.
One candidate in particular is Jerry Davis. Let’s talk about his living arrangements.
He lives in Pearland , TX , out of District B in a 4000 sq ft home. And this house was custom built. If I built a house from the ground up in an area known for 6 figure salary residents I wouldn’t move to Kashmere/ Fifth Ward area unless I had a motive to. His homestead filling in Pearland, not Houston. By law you can only have 1 homestead exemption, not 2. He claims to live in a home in District B at 5517 Pickfair with only 1500 sq ft. He owns 18 rentals properties and 10 of them are in District B. Just because you own property in District B doesn’t mean you live here or can claim residency here. It sounds like he is trying to be deceiving. It’s owned by a rental company Bra Management. Don’t want to drag the kids into a political race but they attend private school in River Oaks. What private schools are in District B. How is he able to identify with our issues in our schools and community if his own children don’t even attend our schools and he doesn’t live in our community? What he is paying for in tuition, is the monthly income for single mothers in our communities. If he lives in District B, why don’t his kids go to school here? Does he think his kids are too good to go to the public schools of District B. But he wants to represent us. Why hasn’t he tries to run for office in Pearland? It’s just a whirlwind of lies going on in this campaign. If he lies about living in District B what else will he lie about? His brother Marcus owns the Breakfast Klub and he stays in Pearland also. I’m pretty sure they are both registered voters and know that they do not live in District B. But I guess they think the citizens of District B are not the smartest being that most of District B is Middle Class and or either poor. Again, I am tired of candidates running for office and not identifying with the people. They are only in it for the perks, glamour and fame local fame. My mama always said if it quacks like a duck and looks like a duck then it must be a duck Check him out. He’s not in it for the people
According to http://www.houstontx.gov/planning/SN/abt_sn.html, "The boundaries of each super neighborhood rely on major physical features (bayous, freeways, etc.) to group together contiguous communities that share common physical characteristics, identity or infrastructure." So, how does dividing superneighborhoods (e.g. SN 22) into multiple commissioner precincts help to "group" them together?
What's wrong with I-10 and I-45/TX-288 being the boundaries of the commissioner precincts?