A quick reminder for all, Harris County (Texas) is larger than half the states in the country with 4.6 million people and is the home of the City of Houston. The Houston region has a population around 6.7 million. Organizing here is like organizing a state, it requires effort.
I am a precinct chair, among many other things. We are four months into the tenure of our new County Chair, Lillie Schechter. There has been a concerted effort to build the party infrastructure through sustaining memberships. There has been ongoing training for candidates, precinct chairs, and volunteers. There is a weekly newsletter that tries to highlight all the activities going on in the county and the metro area: The Blue Report. This report has been invaluable for everyone to know what is going on and help plan around events. That is what coordination looks like.
Harris County had a countywide sweep of judges and elected officials. The district races were better for the Democrats, but not perfect. Hillary won this county by 160K votes when Barack Obama won by less than 10K in 2008 and much less than that in 2012. We are moving more and more blue.
The energy that is here is a combination of activists telling the national campaigns to shove it and Democratic Clubs and Orgs working our neighborhoods. We block-walked the county like crazy. I know one candidate that knocked on 16,000 doors. Yes, 16,000 doors and he lost in a heavily Republican district by less than 1%. Talking to people matters. I know we are looking for candidates to run in every race in 2018. And we have tons of judicial slots to fill. But we are making sure candidates know they will not be alone. I’ve met several this past month that I know I am going to make sure my precinct knows their names.
Elections matter and we can point to our new District Attorney, Kim Ogg, as an example of following through with a campaign promise. Minor marijuana possession has been decriminalized. Those types of victories and policy changes mean something to voters, especially new and young voters. It means something in our Communities of Color.
2018 will be a challenge. The path to a Blue Texas starts right here in Harris County.