The April 4 Houston City Council special election resulted in two candidates advancing to a runoff for the District C seat.
The results
Candidate Joe Panzarella garnered 33.34% of votes, or 3,131 votes, while Nick Hellyar received 22.54% of the vote, or 2,117 votes, according to unofficial results from the Harris County Clerk’s Office. Because no candidate received more than 50% of the overall vote, a runoff election is triggered.
As of April 5, a date for the election has not been set. The winner of the race will serve the remainder of the term, which runs through January 2028.
All results are unofficial until canvassed.
Meet the candidates
Panzarella and Hellyar beat out five other candidates. Panzarella is the president of Freedman’s Town Superneighborhood and works in renewable energy as a developer managing multimillion-dollar projects.
His campaign ran on safe streets, affordable housing and responsible government, according to an April 5 statement. In a Q&A with Community Impact, he noted his top three priorities as establishing responsive constituent services, safe streets and protecting Houston residents from ICE.
“Last night, District C made its voice heard in support of a bold vision for a Houston that works for all of us,” he said. “We are headed to the runoff, grateful to everyone who supported our campaign. Now, let’s get to work building a better Houston, together.”
Hellyar is a real estate broker, small business owner and staffer at Houston City Hall and the Texas Legislature. In his Q&A response, he said he wanted to run for office to “help fix the everyday issues that affect their lives.”
He said in an April 5 statement that he expected there would be a runoff.
“I appreciate the support I received from many District C residents and I look forward to continuing to spread my message of safe neighborhoods and streets, affordable housing, expansion of parks and green space, dependable garbage and trash pickup,” Hellyar said. “Having worked for two council members, I am ready to start day one with no need for on-the-job training, especially important with Council beginning the budget review process.”
Some background
The District C seat on City Council came up for grabs in early 2026 after former council member Abbie Kamin announced her intentions to run for Harris County attorney.
The district is a densely populated urban area that represents over 215,000 residents and covers the Heights, Washington Avenue, Montrose, Rice Village and Meyerland neighborhoods.
During the early voting period, approximately 6,408 residents cast their ballots in person and via mail. On election day, 9,392 residents voted.
