District E: Kingwood v. Clear Lake

This is the second in a series of posts about upcoming City Council races. Check out this week's earlier post about District I, and keep reading Houstonist for more campaign coverage.

District E, currently represented by Addie Wiseman, connects the heavily Republican suburbs of Kingwood and Clear Lake by a narrow strip of land, and this year's City Council race reflects this odd districting. Candidate Annette Dwyer hails from Clear Lake and has served on Wiseman's citizens' advisory committee. The other candidate, Mike Sullivan, is from northeast Houston and is a Humble school board member.

Mike Sullivan announced his candidacy at a Kroger in Kingwood, after being introduced by current At-Large City Council Member Michael Berry. Sullivan chose this spot for a good reason:

I have chosen this location because I will fight for the widening of Northpark from West Lake Houston Parkway to Mills Branch Drive. It also serves as one of the cornerstones of my campaign, which is to bring the maximum amount of CIP dollars to our community.

Sounds good for Kingwood, but does Sullivan have mass appeal? Annette Dwyer's roots are as deep in her own community. She is a 1994 graduate of UH-Clear Lake, and has the advantage of being involved in the Houston municipal government already. The Citizens' Advisory Committee is made up of fourteen people who represent the different areas of the large and diverse District E. The committee meets with Wiseman quarterly to discuss the interests of their own community.

This race looks like a match-up between northeast and southeast Houston conservatives, and it will be interesting to see which candidate can attract voters from outside his or her own community, or at least win endorsements from people who can.