Moral Gut Check Election Day In Alabama

Well Alabama, once again, just as it was during the Civil Rights Movement, the eyes of the nation and the world are upon you. 

This time it is a morality check moment for your state.   Will you elect an ignorant pedophile to the US Senate in Roy Moore, or will you elect  Doug Jones, a man who sent to jail the people who bombed the 16th Street Baptist Church and is more moral than the person who claims he is?

Even the Log Cabin Sellouts Republicans, who never miss an opportunity to sell the LGBTQ community for their tax cuts, considered Roy Moore too reprehensible to support and ran an ad attacking him.

Alabama native Condoleezza Rice has also put country over party, calling for her fellow Alabamians to 'reject bigotry, sexism  and intolerance.'

Alabama Black community, it's nation time.   Will you step up, show up in massive numbers at the polls and show off to the world the awesome power of the Black vote that Alabama Republicans fear so much they have desperately tried to suppress it?

I know Daroneshia Duncan and my homegirls in Magic City are planning to bumrush the polls today.   How about the rest of you Alabama Black SGL and cis community?  Make the rest of Black America proud.

If you're registered to vote in Alabama, you have until 7 PM CST to cast those critically important votes. If it hits 7 PM and you're still in line to vote, don't leave. Stay until you get to vote.Do what you need to do to handle your election business because the Alabama Republicans will use every dirty suppression trick to keep you from voting.

They have a long history of voter suppression and are a major reason why the Voting Rights Act was passed in the first place back in 1965.

I'm betting on Black Alabamians shocking the world despite every GOP attempt to suppress their votes and hopefully carrying Doug Jones to victory.

We' and the world will know in a few hours which road you took.   Did you elect the Democrat with integrity to represent you in the US Senate or the Satan's helper Republican?

You Can Call Phillipe Councilmember-Elect Cunningham!

It took us another day to have it confirmed, but the Minneapolis City Council will have TWO Black trans people sitting on it in a few weeks!

Phillipe Cunningham quit his policy job with Minneapolis Mayor Betsy Hodges to focus on the Herculean task of taking on 20 year incumbent and Minneapolis City Council Board President Barb Johnson.    She had served on the council since 1997, held the presidency for 8 years and was a second generation holder of this Ward 4 seat her mother had previously held.

Johnson was considered unbeatable, but as anyone who watches politics can tell you, no one is unbeatable.  You stay in office long enough and sooner or later you are going to lose an election.

Cunningham was all over Ward 4 introducing himself to voters who liked his message, and combined with help from Trans United Fund and Outfront MN built a campaign team that increased turnout in Ward 4 to the point it helped him grab the historic win.

Minneapolis has an interesting ranked choice voting system that eliminates runoff elections.  Johnson led him by a mere 125 votes that night, but didn't break 50%, which meant that they would have to go through the second and third choice counts until either he or Johnson were declared the winner.

Cunningham made up the early deficit and beat Johnson by 175 votes. 
 

By toppling the Ward 4 incumbent, Cunningham becomes the first out Black trans masculine person elected to public office in the US, the first trans masculine person elected to the Minneapolis City Council, and the first out transmasculine person of any ethnic background to be elected to a the city council of a large city.

And it couldn't have happened to a nicer person.
 
Congratulations Phillipe for your historic win! 

So proud of you, and know that you and Andrea will do some amazing work in conjunction with your fellow councilmembers making your wards and the City of Minneapolis better.

Andrea Jenkins Makes History -Wins In Minneapolis

The wonderful electoral night continues for the trans community as Andrea Jenkins overwhelmingly won her Minneapolis City Council Ward 8 seat and became the first out Black trans person to win elective office in the nation.

This city council race wasn't close.  Jenkins captured 73% of the votes in Minneapolis' ranked choice system, dwarfing the next closest contender by nearly 4000 votes 

She also became with the win the first trans person of any ethnic background to capture a city council seat in a major city, and the first Black trans person since Althea Garrison in 1992 to win elective office. 

Congratulations Councilmember-elect Jenkins.  So proud of your historic win as well. 

Building A Better World With Breakthrough Candidates

I have been saying for years that the most important thing that we must do to take the trans rights movement to the next level is to have trans people run for public office.    It made me exceedingly proud to endorse Andrea Jenkins and Phillipe Cunningham for Minneapolis City Council. They are not only on the verge of making history for trans people and trans people of color, but are also bringing progressive values, proven experience and real leadership that is so desperately needed in these contentious political times. As a multi-racial group of trans and gender expansive people, TUF has been appalled at the level of racism, sexism, homophobia and transphobia at play in this election cycle and in the campaigns of our endorsed candidates. Now that the Koch brothers, national Republicans and downtown business interests have vowed to spend over $1 million dollars to stop a progressive and diverse group of municipal candidates, it validated the importance of these historic races and stiffened our resolve to ensure that through committed action these candidates emerge victorious on Election Day. The level of violence faced by our communities, the levels of HIV, the discrimination and disproportionate impact of poverty are all 'personal is political' issues that reflect whose lives matter and whose lives do not. At Trans United Fund's Breakthrough PAC we are committed to supporting candidates who not only mean it when they say 'trans lives matter' but are committed to real and practical solutions that honor that sentiment. Today, I'm proud to announce our endorsement of four, additional candidates who we believe reflect this commitment: Mayor Betsy Hodges, Jillia Pessenda and Jeremiah Ellison. We will work hard with our partners at OUTFRONT MN to not only support these newly endorsed candidates, but with our coalition partners dramatically expand efforts to Get Out the Vote and fight back against a million dollars of right wing money.

We at Trans United Fund are acutely aware of the saying united we stand, divided we fall   So much of the history of marginalized people is one of division and outside groups seeking to drive wedges in our coalitions, but Trans United Fund knows that if we hand together, we are unstoppable.  

This announcement also comes as our community is preparing to in two week mourn during TDOR the 22 trans people we have lost to hate and violence  We often say rest in power and not one more - not just to mark their deaths - but to make a commitment to a living legacy - a commitment to the different sort of world we want to build. This year has been dark, depressing and challenging, exacerbated by unprecedented violence and political dysfunction. It has been a terrible year for trans people, for women, for immigrants and for all of us that live in the margins. And we have fought back - harder and fiercer than ever - because we know our lives and human rights are on the line.  But unlike previous times, the trans community is not fighting this onslaught of anti-trans injustice alone. We were blessed to have by our side hundreds of thousands of people responding when the Trump Administration attempted to roll back protections for trans youth and attacked our trans troops serving our country in the US armed forces.  The everyday violence against trans people is something more and more people are paying attention to and wanting to do something to end.  More families are stepping up to love and support their trans children-not cruelly throw them in the streets. This positive reality is at the core of what makes - even in the darkest of times - something new and transformative possible.  We are doing our part to help our allies connect the dots and understand how our issues and oppressions we face as transgender people are inextricably linked to theirs. And in a crucial time like this, it is needed and necessary for all of us to come together to help build a world in which trans people not only survive but thrive, but can contribute their talents to help make our communities better. But we can only make real that beautiful dream of a world together. This is just the first step towards building a political home in which we develop a shared vision, a shared strategy and the power we need to make that vision real But we can do none of it without you. Whether you can give your time, your money, your expertise and/or wisdom - please join us in this work today and let’s get started building a world we can all be proud of.

Handle Your Election Business, GA 6

Today is the runoff election in the Georgia 6th Congressional District between Democratic Candidate Jon Ossoff and Republican Karen Handel.

Last month Ossoff just missed winning this congressional seat outright on April 18, getting 48% of the vote to Handel's 18% in a crowded field,  This was a seat that was once held by Newt Gingrich for 20 years and hasn't been held by a Democrat since Jimmy Carter lived in the White House.

And both sides want it badly.   The Democrats want it because it'll put them one seat closet to taking back control of the House in 2018 along with the psychic satisfaction of taking away a seat that once was a GOP bastion.    The Republicans are just as determined to keep it, and that has resulted in both sides spending $56 million in this race.

After all the ads, the campaign stops in the district, the ground games and canvassing for both sides being unleashed, it's all in the hands of the GA 6 voters to decide who gets the seat and momentum toward the 2018 midterm elections as the nation and national news media awaits the results.

So if you live in the GA 6th Congressional District, go handle your electoral business .  This one is extremely close and your vote could decide this election.   You have until 7 PM EDT to cast it, so go do so and take a few friends to the polls with you.

Handle your election business GA 6.

Mike Floyd's PISD Board Trustee Inauguration Today

18 year old Mike Floyd is having the Senior Week to beat all Senior Weeks.  

While his fellow Glenda Dawson High School classmates are looking forward to Senior Week activities and heading to NRG Stadium for their looming graduation on Friday, the UH bound Floyd will be getting inaugurated as the newest and youngest member of the Pearland ISD school board later today.

The 18 year old Floyd pulled off the upset by knocking off two time PISD school board incumbent Rusty DeBorde, who had the endorsement of US 22nd District Congressman Pete Olson (R-Sugar Land ).   DeBorde also committed an unforced error during the campaign by sharing an Islamophobic article on his Facebook page from former Pearland City Councilmember Kevin Cole that caused a major online backlash in the Pearland area on the eve of the election.

Even though the Islamophobic post didn't name her, it was obviously aimed at Pearland City Council candidate Dalia Kasseb, who is the first ever Muslim candidate in Brazoria County history and is currently in a runoff for a city council seat against Woody Owens.

Floyd ran in large part because he was angered by the shameful treatment of trans kid and Pearland ISD student Kai Shappley and the transphobic remarks of Pearland ISD superintendent Dr. James Kelly.  

And yes, in case you were wondering, Dr. Kelly was in Austin to testify in favor of the unjust SB 6 and disgustingly said last year in opposition to the DOE/DOJ letter that support for transgender students was akin to supporting pedophilia and polygamy

Helped out by the incumbent's unforced error and DeBorde's election eve non-apology, Floyd cruised to victory on May 6 by earning 3075 votes (54% of the votes)  to DeBorde's 2597 votes (46% of the votes) to become the youngest person elected to a school board in Texas history

Floyd wasn't your average 18 year old either.   He has been involved in politics for most of his young life before he ran for the PISD board, so he earned this win.

And Kimberly Shappley is ecstatic that he did.  She is grateful for PISD board trustee-Elect Floyd's support of hers and other transgender PISD kids.   She stated in a recent Houston Chronicle interview that his win is a sign that attitudes in Pearland are changing as this community becomes more ethnically and culturally diverse

"Across the board, people are fed up.  They are not going to allow this narrow mindset,"said Shappley.

It also isn't hurting that Pearland area millennials are speaking up and in Mike Floyd's case, successfully running for office.

The result of the winds of change blowing through Pearland is the historic event that will take place at 5 PM later today as Mike Floyd is sworn in as a PISD board trustee.

It may also be a sign that supporting trans people is an enhancement, not a detriment to your electoral chances in the Lone Star State.

Harris County Democratic Party Chair Election Today

My home county, Harris County is the largest by population in the Lone Star State and provides 22% of the vote totals in any statewide election    It is also one of the most diverse counties in the state thanks to its county seat of Houston

We just had the pleasure of watching it turn blue in the 2016 election cycle and want to solidify those  Democratic gains in 2018 and other future elections

Despite that success in turning Harris County from purple to blue, Lane Lewis, who has served ats the HCDP chair since 2011 resigned in February and today at HCDP party headquarters the precinct chairs will gather to select his replacement

Two favorites have emerged so far in Lillie Schechter, who was endorsed by the Houston LGBT Caucus, Eartha Johnson and Dominique Davis, who is active in the HCDP leadership ranks and is garnering an increasing number of supporters for her to get the job.

One of them is me.  

Unlike some of the other candidates, Dominique actually reached out to me and asked for my support.

 I attended a listening session she held yesterday,in Southeast Houston  with a diverse group of precinct chairs and was impressed with her knowledge of the party operations, her willingness to listen to the concerns of the precinct chairs, solicit their ideas for making the HCDP better  and also after it was done, ask me what can be done to increase and have sustained representation of trans people in the Harris County Democratic Party ranks

I believe Dominique Davis would be the perfect choice to succeed Lane Lewis as HCDP chair,. I'm not only enthusiastically endorsing her for HDCP chair, I'm urging people to make that happen at today County Executive Committee meeting..

Thee meeting at HCDP headquarters is open to the general public, but only the precinct chairs will be allowed to vote for our next Harris County Democratic Party leader.

It is running from 3-6 PM and will take place at the IBEW Union hall next door to HCDP headquarters at 1445 North Loop West Fwy.

And yes, I'll be in the house to watch it..

TransGriot Update:  Lillie Schechter ended up getting elected as HCDP chair with 190 votes over Eartha Johnson with 118.   Dominique received 21 votes.

Still Not My President

All I have to say about the Electoral College vote today is this.

I'm going to give Trump the same respect as president as he gave president Obama for eight years...

NONE   #NotMyPOTUS  

Show me your birth certificate

Whose Fault Is It Trump Got Elected?

I've always loved Toni D'orsay's no punches pulled commentary on just about any subject, and miss her Dyssonance blog.

Well, she's baaack.  This is a post from her Facebook page that needs to be signal boosted concerning her take on the 2016 election.

***

So ya'll know that the Turdblossom's supporters are bad at being people.

However, it isn't their fault that he was elected.

It is the fault of the Green Party, and The Democratic Party, and the people who didn't vote because they thought it was a done deal or out of protest about how bad the choices were.

They are the ones at fault. Like me. Although I did vote.

They hold the blame because, for one, these groups tend to not give a fuck about congressional races, and never really do much about local races outside of mayor, maybe governor once in a blue moon in a blue state.

You see, those people - and especially the ones that chose not to vote - are responsible for this.

This being an election where where two and a half people get to dictate the rules for the other ten.

Torn over which little step at a fucking time to take, ignoring the basic need to control the Congress and Legislatures as a matter of simple fact, the idea that one party is just as bad as the other (oh, and fuck you for thinking that, by the way, painfully and with lasting discomfort), the bullshit that says well, now we have to work with the overwhelmingly shitty folks on the other side because (reality check) we didn't elect enough or even run in many cases someone on our side.

That means you. This mess is your fault. This mess is my fault, even though I have been saying this for years because (reality check) this is how the folks on the other side did it.

Think on this, real quick:

What would Obama have accomplished had he not had to deal with six years of racist fucks?

An equal rights Amendment could be passed easily in dem controlled legislatures and a congress. A real tax plan that shuts down the fuckers about to rape our nation and make for a better country. Even a basic income for everyone and free collegiate education.

You fucked that up. Not them -- they did what they wanted to do. And there aren't as many of them.

It would be easy to do, but will take a decade now. Starting with two simple steps:

First, you start attending your local precinct meetings for the Dems. Every single month, like clockwork.

Bonus in that if you are single: cheap, interesting way to meet people. It's like Church, without God looking over your shoulder.

Second, you work your ass off to make sure that in 2018 that a majority or parity of Dems (yes, Dems, not greens, not libertarians, not whatever the fuck else) get into office in the Legislatures and in Congress in 2018.

If you have bitched about redistricting, keep in mind, that the 2018 and 2020 elections are the ones that will determine it. Just as the 2008 elections were.

This is so fucking important: there is no real leader right now in the Dems. Not Bernie, not Hillary, not Rahm, not Warren, none of them.

Not a single fuckin one of them.

New people. People of color and women and LGBT people and disabled folks and, well, you damn well better get the idea that white people and men are not the best choice here.

Fucking draft them if you have to. Except me. I would rather be chief of staff or something. Bad teeth.

Find them. Elect them. Make them understand that now we are going for the whole enchilada, the big fucking dream, and punch it.

Single payer. Minimum income. Free college. Minimum and Maximum wage. Yes, higher taxes. Sorry, don't be a fucking shitlord, taxes, and no damned deductions for incomes in the top 40%. Ironclad national rights and the power to prosecute.

You want that? In your lifetimes? Then you better fucking fight for it now.

Put your money where your mouth is. Don't like higher taxes but like the rest? Deal. That is how you kill classism really fucking fast. Don't like trans rights? Deal: that is how you get out of those student loans,

Want to save the environment, combat climate changes worst effects ( um, in case you didn't realize, this election just tipped the scales so far it is over )? This is how.

This really is the only way, as well. Because we have tried it the rest of the way.

Get voters out. To do that, promise them what they want.

And remember that the single largest population curve in US history is hitting voting age.

This is what they care about.

Trust me, white folks in flyover country will like it because it gives them what they want: money in pocket.

They will be politically correct once this 4 years is up.

And then we can do shit like fine folks who run for office and lie.

There is no other real way that doesn't involve giving those who hate the rest of us what they want.

Oh, and, yeah, I will run if I get my teeth fixed. F**k yeah.

Down Goes The NC Gubernatorial Transphobe!

Doing the happy dance here in H-town after hearing that transphobic NC Gov. Pat McCrory (R-NC) after stalling for over a month, finally conceded that he lost the North Carolina governor's race to  his Democratic challenger in NC Atty. General Roy Cooper.

McCrory made history by becoming the first North Carolina governor to lose a reelection bid.

Roll that beautiful footage.



It was well deserved after pushing the unjust HB 2 that caused $500 million (and counting) of economic damage to his state and saw sporting events, jobs, concerts and conventions leave the state.

Note to my Texas GOP idiots.  Don't go down that road.  

Congrats to all the people in North Carolina who worked hard to oust him from the governor's mansion and giving Democrats and the TBLGQ community something to cheer. in Governor -elect Roy Cooper who will become the 75th governor of the state..  

It's Election Day 2016!

Today is the day we find out who will succeed President Obama and become the 45th president of the United States.  Will it be another history making night in terms of us getting our first female president, or will it be another disaster like 2000?

As per a tradition that has been taking place since 1960, the seven residents of the town of  Dixville Notch, NH cast their ballots at midnight EST.   So what were the results?  Clinton received 4 votes, Trump received 2, Johnson 1 and one write in vote for 2016 Republican nominee Mitt Romney. In the other midnight voting town of Hart's Location, NH  She garnered 21 votes to Trump's 17. Johnson got 3, Bernie Sanders 2 write in votes and  Kasich/Sanders 1

We'll find out in a few hours if she won the state of New Hampshire and the combination of states she needs to get to 270 electoral votes.   We'll also find out how accurate the presidential election map prediction I made in September turned out.

It's also an election that I, many trans people, parents of trans kids and our allies across the US are nervous about, along with much of the world who would rather see Hillary Clinton elected POTUS.   .
If you didn't take advantage of early voting, you'll have to go to your regular precinct today from 7 Am to 7 PM.   As long as you are in line before the polls close at 7 PM, you can vote in this crucial presidential election.

As a reminder, yours truly will also be taking part along with several Houston area bloggers as part of the ABC13 coverage of Election Night.  I'll also be tweeting via my TransGriot Twitter feed.

So if you haven't voted,  please do so, because this is what I want to see happening across the country for Trump supporters later tonight

Are Latinx Voters Finally Kicking The GOP To The Political Curb?

One of the things I have been hoping for and thinking about for a long time over the history of this blog is wondering when Latinx voters across the nation would get tired of being dissed by the GOP, have the same epiphany about the Republican Party not being their friends as their California cousins got in the late 90's, and react by punishing them at the polls?

It's a question I and a lot of people in liberal-progressive political world have long asked ourselves and waited with gleeful anticipation to see answered.   .

When would Latinos, the fastest growing ethnic group in the US, get tired of Republicans racistly attacking them for conservative political gain and as happened in California, kick the GOP to the political curb?

Looks like the answer to that question may be 2016.  

In California, you can trace the decline of the Republican Party in the state in large part to the passage in 1994 of the racist Proposition 187 that was pushed by then California Governor Pete Wilson (R), the California GOP and aimed primarily at undocumented Latinx immigrants..

After it passed on November 10, three days later it was hit with a federal injunction blocking its enforcement.   After Gray Davis (D) was elected, the state dropped the appeal of the federal injunction in 1999, which effectively repealed it.

But what California Republicans failed to realize as they gleefully celebrated that Prop 187 win in 1994 is that by being gung ho for anti- Latinx discrimination and attacking immigrants, they were setting up the unforeseen consequences of the decline of their party and pissing off a generation of California Latinx voters  
California went from being a competitive swing state to a safe Democratic bastion in less than a decade because California Latinx people left the party and then punished them at the polls for pushing the unjust law.

One of the smart things that George W. Bush tried to do as governor and Rick Perry continued as his successor was attempting to keep what happened to the California Republican Party from occurring in Texas by doing outreach to the Texas Latinx community, and appointing Latinx people to open statewide offices and positions.   He and the Texas GOP were quite aware of Texas rapidly changing demographics and inevitably becoming like California a majority minority population state by 2009.

One of their strategies for dealing with it was attempting to build the Latinx community up as a bloc to cancel out African-Americans, who they long ago lost as a constituency in 1964

But with the increasing anti-Latinx and anti-immigration rhetoric in the GOP political ranks as part of their Massive Resistance 2.0 strategy aimed at President Obama who was in favor of comprehensive immigration reform,  combined with a candidate in Trump despised by the Latinx community, it sure looks like the long hoped for Latinx voters permanently dumping the Republican Party and realigning their votes as part of the Democratic coalition may finally be happening.

The catalyst for this possible seismic political shift it is the Donald Trump campaign, his big mouth, Trump's racist antics attacking federal District Judge Gonzalo Curiel, former Miss Universe Alicia Machado. Univision and its journalists and his campaign's anti-Mexican rhetoric.

Trump has not been helped by his own Latino surrogates spouting more anti-Latinx immigrant rhetoric themselves like the infamous 'taco truck on every corner' comment by Latinos for Trump founder Marco Gutierrez back in September.

Latinx participation in the 2016 presidential election cycle was dramatically up across the country.  We have had Latinx celebs like America Ferrera, Eva Longoria and Wilson Cruz acting as surrogates for the Clinton campaign , and it may be the difference in this election.  

We'll see how much of a difference it makes in 48 hours.  We'll have to stay tuned to discover whether this massive Latinx rejection of Republicans fueled by dislike of Trump continues in down ballot races and beyond November 8.

I hope the message sinks in to the Latinx community that the best way to deal with politicians who disrespect your community is either vote them out of office in every election cycle or build a wall of votes for their opponent that keeps the offensive politician out of office in the first place.

I also hope the Latinx community continues to show up and show out in large numbers in every election cycle from now on as an an important part of a liberal-progressive voting bloc that will make this country better.

Last Day Of Texas Early Voting

Today is the last day of early voting in Battleground Texas, and in Harris County and elsewhere across our vast state, early voting turnout has not only seen large numbers of Democrats participating, it is setting records in many of the most populous counties across Texas,

I handled my early voting business on the first day, so if you haven't voted yet, tomorrow is your last opportunity to do so.   You have until 7 PM to be in line at your fave early voting place and cast your ballots in this critical election for not only the next president, but all the important down ballot races that affect your every day life. .

If you miss this last day of early voting, you'll have to wait until Election day to cast your ballot, and you'll have to do so from your regular polling place.

It's your choice.  You can either do it on Friday and have your choice of early voting spots across the county to do so, or wait until Tuesday and be able to vote only at your regular precinct.

But whatever you choose to do, just vote.  The stakes are too high in this election for you to sit it out.

2016 Houston GLBT Political Caucus Endorsements

I've mentioned the Houston GLBT Political Caucus Card in some of my 2016 election posts,   To make it easier for y'all to #VoteTheCard,  here for your TransGriot viewing pleasure are the people who were endorsed in this 2016 election cycle by the Caucus

US Representative
• US Rep, District 2: Pat Bryan
• US Rep, District 7: James Cargas
• US Rep, District 18: Sheila Jackson Lee

Texas Supreme Court
• Justice, Supreme Court, Place 3: Mike Westergreen

Texas State Board of Education
• Member, State Board of Education, District 6: R. Dakota Carter

Texas State Representative
• State Representative, District 126: Joy Dawson-Thomas
• State Representative, District 131: Alma Allen
• State Representative, District 134: Ben Rose
• State Representative, District 135: Jesse A. Ybanez
• State Representative, District 137: Gene Wu
• State Representative, District 139: Jarvis Johnson
• State Representative, District 140: Armando Walle
• State Representative, District 147: Garnet Coleman
• State Representative, District 148: Jessica Farrar
• State Representative, District 149: Hubert Vo

Texas Court of Appeals
• Justice, 1st Court of Appeals, Place 4: Barbara Gardner
• Justice, 14th Court of Appeals, Place 2: Candace White
• Justice, 14th Court of Appeals, Place 9: Peter Kelly
District Judges
• District Judge, 11th: Kristen Hawkins
• District Judge 61st: Fredericka Phillips
• District Judge 80th: Larry Weiman
• District Judge 125th: Kyle Carter
• District Judge 127th: R. K. Sandill
• District Judge 129th: Michael Gomez
• District Judge 133rd: Jaclanel McFarland
• District Judge 151st: Mike Englehart
• District Judge 152nd: Robert K. Schaffer
• District Judge 164th: Alexandra Smoots-Hogan
• District Judge 165th: Ursula A. Hall
• District Judge 174th: Hazel Jones
• District Judge 177th: Robert Johnson
• District Judge 178th: Kelli Johnson
• District Judge 179th: Randy Roll
• District Judge 333rd: Daryl Moore
• District Judge 334th: Steve Kirkland
• District Judge 337th: Herb Ritchie
• District Judge 338th: Ramona Franklin
• District Judge 339th: Maria T. Jackson
• District Judge 507th: Julia Maldonado

County District Attorney
• Harris County District Attorney: Kim Ogg
County Civil Court
• Judge, County Civil Court at Law No. 1: George Barnstone

County Attorney
• Harris County Attorney: Vince Ryan

Sheriff
• Harris County Sheriff: Ed Gonzalez

County Tax Assessor- Collector
• Harris County Tax Assessor Collector: Ann Harris Bennett

County School Trustee 
• Harris County School Trustee, Position 1, Precinct 2: Sherrie L. Matula
• Harris County School Trustee, Position 2, Precinct 4: Marilyn Burgess

County Commissioner
• Harris County Commissioner, Precinct 1: Rodney Ellis
• Harris County Commissioner, Precinct 3: Jenifer Pool

Justice Of The Peace
• Justice of the Peace, Precinct 1, Place 1: Eric William Carter
• Justice of the Peace, Precinct 3, Place 1: Joe Stephens

Constable
• Constable, Precinct 1: Alan Rosen
• Constable, Precinct 7: May Walker

HISD School Board (special election)
• HISD District 7: Anne Sung

Record Breaking Early Vote First Day In Harris County

If you early voted in Harris County today like I did, you were part of making some electoral history

We had 67, 471 people early vote across the county at the 40 early voting locations.  That's the highest number we've ever had participate in early voting, with the previous record set in 2012 with 47,000 voters on the first day

I'm also hearing the same thing is happening in Travis (Austin), Bexar (San Antonio), El Paso and Dallas counties.  Haven't heard yet if the same thing is happening in Tarrant County (Fort Worth)

The significance of that is that Harris County, the largest county in the state of Texas by population, provides 16% of the total in any statewide race.  

FYI, the rest of the top five in order are Dallas, Tarrant, Bexar and Travis counties

If those early voters are predominately Democratic ones as my glance across my social media circles seems to be indicating, it's a great early sign for the Clinton campaign and Democrats across the state in down ballot races.

I hope the Clinton campaign will consider doing a quick campaign trip here to Houston, Dallas, Austin  and San Antonio to really fire up the Democratic voters here and cement the fact this is a battleground state that has the power to finish off Trump's presidential campaign.

Click the map to create your own at 270toWin.com

Texas' 38 electoral votes make it the second largest electoral vote prize in this and any presidential election cycle after California and its massive 55 electoral votes.

Since 1980, Texas has acted like California does in terms of being the electoral vote base for Republican presidential election success.   If Texas goes blue his year, without Texas in the Trump column to counteract California's 55 EV's going to Clinton, it would make it mathematically impossible for Trump to win the presidency, and Clinton would pass the magic 270 EV's she needs to become our 45th president before we even start adding other battleground states into the mix.

While this is good news so far, it only becomes a reality if you vote.  If you haven't voted yet, please do so.  When you do, vote the entire ballot from the top of the ticket to dog catcher

Early voting in Texas will run until November 4.

First Lady Michelle Obama Calls Out Trump's Treatment Of Women In NH Speech

First Lady Michelle Obama was tellin' it like it T-I-S is about a certain Republican sexual predator running for the presidency.

“The measure of any society is how it treats their women and girls. I can’t believe that a candidate for president of the United States has bragged about sexually assaulting women. This kind of violence and abuse and disrespect to women… This is not something that we just sweep under the rug as another disturbing footnote in a sad election season. The shameful comments about our bodies, the disrespect to our intellects, the belief that you can do anything to a woman. It’s cruel. The truth is it hurts. We are drowning in it.

All of us are doing what women have always done. We’re trying to keep our heads above water, just trying to get through it, trying to pretend that this doesn’t really bother us. Maybe we think that admitting how much it hurts makes us as women look weak. Maybe we’re afraid of being that vulnerable. Maybe we’ve grown accustomed to swallowing these emotions and staying quiet because we’ve seen that people often won’t take our word over his. Or maybe we don’t want to believe that there are still people our there who think so little of us as women. So many are treating this as just another day, as if our outrage is overblown. This is not normal. This is not politics as usual. This is disgraceful; it is not tolerable.

It doesn’t matter what party you belong to. None of us deserve this kind of abuse. This isn’t about politics. It’s about basic human decency. We cannot expose our children to this any longer, not for another minute, and let alone for four years. Now is the time for all of us to say enough is enough. If all of this is painful to us as grown women, what do you think this is doing to our children? What lessons do you think this is teaching to girls about their worth?

To dismiss this as ‘locker room talk’ is an insult to decent men. The men in my life are concerned about what this election is doing to our boys and men who are looking for role models. Strong men, men who are truly role models don’t need to put down women to feel powerful.

We need someone who is a united force, someone who will heal the wounds that divide us. I believe with all my heart that Hillary Clinton will be that president. When things get tough, she doesn’t complain. She doesn’t abandon ship. Hillary Clinton has never quit on anything in her life. She is someone who has waited her turn and helped out while waiting! No one could be more qualified for this job than Hillary. We as Americans, we as decent human beings, can come together and declare that enough is enough. We need to recover from our shock and depression and we need to do what women do, we roll up our sleeves and get to work. We need to vote, we need to make calls. We cannot afford to be tired or turned off. On November 8, we have the opportunity to show our children that this country is big enough for us all, and that each of us is a precious part of this great American story and we are always stronger together. We reject hatred and fear. In difficult times we don't discard our highest ideals. That is who we are, and don't let anyone tell you differently!"

Here's a link to the video of the FLOTUS' Manchester, New Hampshire speech

Clinton Decisively Wins Second Presidential Debate

The second presidential debate turned out as expected with Donald Trump lying through his teeth once again in addition to having some WTF moments.

Trump at one point is standing uncomfortably close to Clinton during that debate after admitting to co-moderator Anderson Cooper that he doesn't understand what sexual assault is.

As usual, any time Trump was asked a direct question, he didn't answer it and deflected to attacking Clinton.   He also attacked a Clinton that last ran and won re-election presidency in 1996 in Bill.

But Bill isn't running, it's his wife.   What Bill Clinton did 20 years ago isn't for debate in 2016.  That was dealt with back in the 90's.   Donald is the one running for POTUS, and it's your character that is being evaluated.
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Despite the pathetic attempts of the conservative leaning pundits to attempt to call this a 'win' for Trump, it wasn't, especially when you make the jaw dropping statement that you're going to throw your political opponent in jail and you 'have the utmost respect' for women when it's been glaringly obvious in this campaign and throughout your life you don't .

While co-moderators Martha Raddatz of ABC and Anderson Cooper of CNN did yeoman's work in keeping this debate from spinning out of control and devolving into a WWE cage match, one of the things I didn't like is the fact that despite being less than 30 minutes from Ferguson, MO, not one question was asked during this 93 minute debate about police reform or #Black Lives Matter.

Neither were their any questions asked about LGBTQ rights or what either candidate would do to protect and defend the human rights of transgender Americans.

And with Chris Wallace of FOX News moderating the final debate in Las Vegas on October 19, I doubt any questions on those two subjects will be asked at that debate either.

But once again, a great night for Clinton, with another decisive debate win despite the appearance more combative but still facts free Trump.

Final debate on the UNLV campus will be interesting to see play out.

2016 Presidential Election October Registration Deadlines

Today is October 1, and we are just 37 days away from a critical Election Day on November 8.  

Just as a reminder of how much time you have left in your state or territory to register to vote and participate in this critical election, I posted those dates to the blog last month.

In September there were only two territories that had voter registration deadlines.  If you live in the Northern Marianas (September 9) or Puerto Rico (September 19), your registration deadlines have already passed

There are 36 states and three territories that have election registration deadlines in October, and as a TransGriot public service, I'm going to remind you readers of what those dates are.

And hallelujah, early voting starts in Texas on October 24 and runs until November 4.   But in order to participate, you must be registered to vote by October 11 and have that blue voter registration card in order to participate in this 2016 presidential election.  

As an additional  reminder for my Lone Star State readers, thanks to a federal court order, the Texas GOP Voter Suppression law is no longer in effect, and you don't need a photo ID to vote.

October Registration Deadlines 

October 8 in  Mississippi, South Carolina and the US Virgin Islands,

October 9 in Alaska, Rhode Island

October 10 in American Samoa, Arizona, Arkansas and Hawaii

October 11 as I mentioned earlier in the post is deadline day for Texas and ten other states.  
For those of you live in the Lone Star State, you need to make that registration happen and have that blue voter registration card by this Tuesday date.  

The other states in which you need to handle your electoral registration business by this date are Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, New Mexico, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Tennessee.  

Florida, Georgia, New Mexico, Ohio and Pennsylvania are 2016 swing states, and so if you wish to determine who the next POTUS will be, get busy getting registered.

October 12 in Missouri

October 14 in New York, North Carolina and Oklahoma.   

So peeps in the Tarheel State, if you want to kick Pat My Crotch out of the governor's mansion along with the unjust GOP controlled NC legislature, have until this date to register for the election   You're in a swing state as well.

October 14 in Delaware

October 17 in Virginia.

October 18 in Kansas, Minnesota  Nevada, New Jersey, Oregon and West Virginia   Nevada is another crucial swing state, so please handle your election registration business there. 

October 19 in Massachusetts

October 24 in Alabama, California and South Dakota

October 28 in Guam, Nebraska

October 31 in Washington   If you peeps living there don't want to have the horrifying prospect of a President Donald Trump, you must be registered in your state by Halloween.

Kerry Washington Puts Trump On Blast

I love actress and advocate KerryWashington for a lot of reasons, and one of them is because she is  keen observer of what's going on politically in our country.

And in her recent appearance on HBO's Real Time With Bill Maher is just the latest example of of her getting political, and in this case putting the Trumpenfuhrer on blast.

Enjoy her snatching his combover off his head.

TransGriot 2016 Presidential Electoral Vote Map Prediction

Since I'm the 2016 Netroots Nation Pundit Cup champion, I've been getting asked by many of my readers since I correctly called the Democratic presidential primary race back in February, what's my opinion concerning who is going to win the presidential election?

Before we get to that, I encourage you, especially if you're in the TBLGQ community or an ally or friend to us and love this country, to not only get registered to vote in your state or territory, but participate on Election Day by voting the entire ballot from president to dog catcher.

Here are the 2016 election deadlines for getting registered for the November 8 election in your state or territory.

The interactive map is courtesy of 270ToWin, so if you wish to play with scenarios of your own, you can go to their site and play with the maps.

And now, the TransGriot 2016 Presidential Electoral Map Prediction.   This is what I believe will happen on November 8.

Click the map to create your own at 270toWin.com

I'm predicting Hillary Clinton will become our first female president in an electoral blowout .