Houston Dem. Candidates Taking Police Union Endorsement Must Ask Union To Disavow Anti-Democratic Officials

Democrats running for Houston City Council who take the endorsement of the Houston Police Officers Union must ask the union to step away from backing politicians who support election-denial.

​It's a really low bar. 

(The focus here is police unions. Not police departments.) 

If the Houston Police Officers Union wants to support Greg Abbott, Dan Patrick or Alexandra Mealer before Election Day--Fine. It's terrible judgment. But it's a free country. (The union also endorsed Ken Paxton.)  

But when Greg Abbott and Dan Patrick say Harris County is running unfair elections and should re-do elections, that's when the union can withdraw support. When Alexandra Mealer files a lawsuit she later withdraws to overturn her defeat, thats when you say I can't go any further with you.  

There is no public safety without democracy. It is not difficult to imagine law enforcement unions teaming up with far-right statewide officials to bypass multi-racial and Democratic voting cities and counties. 

Maybe HPOU loves democracy more than anything. You never know. But they need to toss overboard politicians who don't seem keen on democracy. Doing so would be a great sign of respect for the officers harmed during the January 6 insurrection attempt at the U.S. Capitol.

​(Detailed reports by Jen Rice at the Houston Chronicle and Andrew Schneider at KUHF 88.7 have made clear 2022 Harris County elections were conducted fairly.)    

Here are 2023 Houston municipal Democrats who have accepted the HPOU endorsement:

Mayor: John Whitmire 
At -Large #1: Melanie Miles
At -Large #2: Nick Hellyar 
At-Large #4: Letitia Plummer
At-Large #5: Sallie Alcorn
District B: Tarsha Jackson
District C: Abbie Kamin
District D: Carolyn Evans-Shabazz
District F: Tiffany Thomas
District H: Mario Castillo
District I: Joaquin Martinez
District J: Edward Pollard *
District K: Martha Castex-Tatum      

*Edward Pollard is maybe not a Democrat.   

There are a lot of issues in our Houston city elections. There are concerns regarding policing. The Houston Democracy Project though is focused just on democracy in Houston and Harris County. One emphasis of the Project is rank & file citizens demanding the people they elect advocate for freedom even when difficult.

​When political candidates make the call to determine if law enforcement unions meet the standards of their campaigns, they should consider the role such unions play in backing officials who don't support our most essential freedoms.             

The Houston Democracy Project works daily to make democracy a top issue in 2023 Houston politics and to inspire, organize and strengthen pro-democracy coalitions in Houston and Harris County.

Please share word of the Project and support the effort with your contribution. If you have a question   about the Project or a suggestion, please send an e-mail to [email protected].

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