Editor's note: The story was updated to include comments from Tom Reid and Woody Owens, who were previously not available for comment prior to press time.

The city of Pearland election cycle concluded with the June 10 runoff with nearly 13,437 votes cast, which is a 20 percent turnout.

Pearland Mayor Tom Reid, who faced his first mayoral runoff this cycle, beat out contestant Quentin Wiltz by nearly 19 percentage points. Reid received 7,960 votes to Wiltz’s 5,447 votes.

“The biggest thing we need to do is to get the city in order so we can handle the growth in a more timely fashion,” Reid said. “I felt very good that the citizens recognized that I’ve done a fairly decent job. Having them support me was quite a compliment.”


Reid, 91, is the longest-serving mayor in Pearland history, serving from 1978-1990. He took a hiatus and returned to the office in 1995 to serve to the present.

Reid is a former engineer who retired from Johnson Space Center in 1997 after 32 years. He has also served the city in the past as a planning and zoning commissioner, a City Council member, chairman of the Pearland Library Board and chairman of the Brazoria County Drainage District No. 4.

Wiltz is a 10-year resident of Pearland and an executive at Stupp Coating LLC. Wiltz made two unsuccessful bids for Pearland City Council in 2013 and 2015.

Wiltz was not immediately available for comment.

The turnout for the runoff election was higher than the May election, with 5,770 more voters turning out to vote in June. The last two runoff elections for Pearland City Council occurred in 2016 and 2015, both of which experienced voter turnout of 3.7 percent and 5 percent respectively.

The second runoff election is for City Council position No. 7. Although contender Dalia Kasseb received nearly 41 percent of the vote during the May election, which was more than any of the other five candidates in the race, Kasseb fell short in the runoff. Former council member Woody Owens overtook Dalia Kasseb for the seat by nearly 17 percentage points in the June runoff.

Owens will be the first person to serve in position No. 7, which is a newly created council seat. The position was created three years ago after officials amended the city charter to expand representation on council from five to seven elected officials.

“Over the next three years beginning next week, I will work with Mayor Reid, City Council members and [the] city manager to focus on projects to relieve the traffic in Pearland. The focus will be on completing new roads, improving existing roadways and working with other agencies for other sources of infrastructure funding,” Owens said.


Woody Owens is a former Pearland City Council member who served 12 years and retired from the council in 2013 due to term limits. Owens previously ran for mayor in 2014.

Owens co-founded the Greater 288 Regional Partnership in 2010, which advocates for the development of the Hwy. 288 corridor, serves as a board member and is the organization’s former vice chairman. He is also the vice president of Houston-based Aztec Engineering Group Inc.

Kasseb is a newcomer to Pearland politics, and this cycle marked her first time running for any political office.

Kasseb, a pharmacist, is co-owner of Pyramids Pharmacy and a Shadow Creek Ranch resident. She received her doctorate from the University of Louisiana at Monroe in 2010 and moved to Pearland in 2013 to for her pharmacy residency at CHI St. Luke’s Health-Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center.

"I was so proud of my city. This is a historical election this has never happened in Pearland before where almost 20 percent of the voting population came out to vote ... This has never happened before in Pearland, and I'm so humbled to be a part of this history," Kasseb said. "More than 5,500 people came out to support me, and I will continue to be active to make sure their voices are heard."

The runoff election results will be canvassed by city council, and the elected officials will be sworn into office on June 19.

Reid and Owens will join the winners of two council seats that were on the ballot in May. Incumbent council member Gary Moore won his re-election bid, and J. David Little was elected to succeed council member Greg Hill. Little will serve his first term on city council. Hill announced his resignation from council in January to focus on his campaign for a county judgeship.