Lucio Vasquez / Houston Public Media
Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo said she had always planned to endorse Congressman Al Green for Texas’ 18th Congressional District seat, despite previously backing his now political opponent in the recent special election to fill the remainder of the term.
The endorsement came just days after voters elected former Harris County Attorney Christian Menefee in the special runoff election to fill the seat left vacant after the death of Congressman Sylvester Turner. Menefee received about 68.4% of the vote against former Houston City Councilwoman Amanda Edwards in the Saturday election, according to election results.
Though Menefee was sworn into office this week, his campaign efforts to keep the seat won’t slow down. He will run in March’s Democratic primary election against Green, who recently announced his intentions to run in the 18th congressional race, after he was redrawn into the district following the 2025 mid-decade redistricting by Republicans.
Hidalgo this week recognized Green’s fight for Houston’s values and efforts to deliver $90 million for flood relief in Harris County in an endorsement posted to Facebook. In an interview with Houston Public Media on Tuesday, she said she’s worked with Green since she was first elected to office.
“He’s a friend,” Hidalgo said. “It’s really not so much a political decision as a personal decision. Initially, it was Amanda Edwards versus Christian Menefee. I’ve worked with Christian Menefee at the county; I think he’s a wonderful leader. And then it became Christian Menefee versus Congressman Green, [who] I’ve worked with more and I’m closer to, and I think he can still be very effective. But I recognize just how bizarre the whole thing is.”
Though Menefee previously provided legal counsel to the county government and acted as its representative in litigation, he also repeatedly used his position to fight President Donald Trump’s administration in federal court — at times appearing with Hidalgo in press conferences about the county’s efforts to prevent negative federal action.
Harris County commissioners and Hidalgo delayed for months appointing an interim to backfill his position as county attorney while he campaigned for the congressional seat, with Hidalgo citing logistical reasons.
“I recognize the fact that we’re all talking about a new generation of leadership and that’s sort of what I was when I was elected,” Hidalgo said on Tuesday. “It’s impossible to fulfill all the criteria, and so the criteria that I fulfilled, that’s where that led me.”
In response to Hidalgo’s endorsement of Green, Menefee told Houston Public Media he is working to do business in Congress and hadn’t thought about the campaign.
“People know my record, and they know what I bring to the table, and they know how I will serve the folks in the 18th Congressional District, so I’m not concerned about any endorsements,” Menefee said. “I’m just working hard to serve the people, and they will make the decision at the ballot box. The endorsement I’m most interested in are the people who live in the 18th Congressional District, the voters.”
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