The Democratic candidates are Titus Benton and Miguel Gonzalez. Republican incumbent Joan Huffman is running unopposed. The winner in the March primaries will be on the ballot in the November general election. Candidate responses may have been edited for length and clarity.
*Indicates incumbent
Titus Benton
Experience: I’m a former pastor and a nonprofit executive with 20 years of leadership experience. Above all, I deeply love people and want to improve communities.
Occupation: Chief Operating Officer of an anti-trafficking organization in Houston
Website: www.titusfortexas.com
Contact information: [email protected]
Miguel Gonzalez
Experience: I teach high school English, and I'm a small business owner. I'm also a former local [chair] for the UTUE Local - 11
Occupation: Small business owner, educator
Website: www.miguel4texas.com
Contact information: www.miguel4texas.com
QUESTIONS
Q: If elected, what will be your top three priorities?
Benton: My top priorities are health care access, economic justice and voting rights. Everyone deserves access to affordable, quality health care. It's time for Texas to expand Medicaid and fund safety nets to ensure no one goes without the care they need. Economic justice means a minimum wage that is a livable wage and equitable employment practices. Lastly, we must ensure that everyone has equal access to the ballot box and no vote is diluted by partisan gerrymandering.
Gonzalez: If elected, my top three priorities will be voting rights, accessible health care and the power grid. My focus would be on voting rights because I believe that if we can fix this and get the Senate to pass voting rights legislation, everything else will fall into place.
Q: How do you plan on addressing concerns of flooding in the area?
Benton: I think we should fund solutions in advance instead of repeatedly paying to clean up afterward. Build the Ike Dike, fund the Katy Prairie Conservancy, and cease irresponsible development practices. The damage of Hurricane Harvey was around $125 billion. The cost of a third reservoir would be about $500 million. It doesn't take an economist to understand it’s wiser to invest in the infrastructure in advance and avoid the economic and human cost.
Gonzalez: Flooding needs to be addressed with funding for adequate drainage throughout the city, as well as building restrictions in places we know will flood.
Q: Do you believe that the process of redistricting is fair or unfair?
Benton: It’s not only unfair, but also undemocratic. Joan Huffman, the incumbent in District 17, says she's proud to serve as the chair of the redistricting committee in Texas. But as the Chief Gerrymandering Officer in Texas, she holds enormous influence over the composition of her own district. Democracy means people choose the representatives they think will serve their interests, but Joan Huffman chose the people she thinks will serve hers. That it's legal is astonishing.
Gonzalez: Redistricting or gerrymandering done the way Texas Republicans have done it is extremely unfair and probably illegal. This is shown in the [Department of Justice's] current lawsuit against Texas's most recent redistricting.
