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U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee will run for reelection in Texas’ 18th Congressional District, shaking up a Democratic primary that has been in limbo since her resounding defeat in the runoff for Houston mayor on Saturday.
The congresswoman’s entrance in the race led to one of the two former Jackson Lee interns that had announced bids for the seat to suspend his campaign.
Former Houston City Council member Amanda Edwards, however, said she was staying in the race, arguing the district is ready for change, potentially setting the stage for the toughest challenge to Jackson Lee’s incumbency in her career.
Jackson Lee’s decision comes in advance of a 6 p.m. Monday filing deadline for candidates to enter 2024 contests in Texas and two days after she was defeated by a 36 percent-to-64 percent margin in mayoral runoff against state Sen. John Whitmire, D-Houston.
Jackson Lee announced her reelection campaign in a statement Monday afternoon.
“Reflecting on the impactful strides we’ve made together; I am compelled by the numerous opportunities still ahead to enhance the lives of my constituents,” she wrote.
Jackson Lee submitted the filing to the Harris County Democratic Party on Sunday, Jackson Lee spokeswoman Linda Brown said.
The field shrank as soon as Jackson Lee entered it. Former University of Houston student body president Isaiah Martin, 25, announced Monday afternoon that he was suspending his campaign and endorsed Jackson Lee’s candidacy. Martin had not filed to appear on the ballot prior to suspending his campaign.
“Throughout this campaign, we’ve laid forth an agenda to stand up to the assault on voting rights, make it easier to see a doctor in the neighborhood, train more workers for the jobs of tomorrow; Congresswoman Jackson Lee has already delivered on this and is well-positioned to do even more next Congress,” Martin wrote.
Martin argued Jackson Lee’s three decades of experience on Capitol Hill will provide more value to Houstonians than any freshman member could.
Edwards, 41, originally filed to run for mayor but dropped out of that contest after Jackson Lee entered the race. Edwards then announced in June she was running as a Democrat for Jackson Lee’s congressional seat and endorsed her candidacy for mayor.
This time, she is not stepping aside for Jackson Lee.
Shortly after news broke of Jackson Lee’s filing, Edwards’ campaign released a statement reiterating her commitment to the race and calling for “new ideas, new solutions and new leadership in Congress.”
Edwards already had filed to be on the ballot for the March 5 Democratic Primary.
“I’m a fresh face,” Jackson Lee responded at a news conference Monday. “Every year that I go back to the United States Congress, I’m committed to change, to leading, to solving problems.”
Jackson Lee cited unfinished business in Congress as her reason for returning, including immigration reform, upcoming appropriations from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and a desire to complete the Emancipation Trail that runs from Galveston to Houston.
Turning her full attention back to Congress, Jackson Lee promised to work closely with Mayor-elect Whitmire to meet the needs of the city.
“Just as I have worked with all the other mayors, as I am needed, I will help,” she said.
In the wake of her election defeat Saturday, Jackson Lee’s decision to run for reelection was not surprising, Rice University political scientist Mark Jones said.
“I think it was relatively predictable in that someone who has been in Congress for three decades was unlikely to want to have their career end on a defeat in a mayoral election, let alone the landslide defeat she suffered,” he said.
Edwards faces an uphill battle to unseat Jackson Lee in a primary in the safely Democratic congressional district.
Jackson Lee has held the seat since defeating incumbent Craig Washington in the 1994 Democratic Primary by 27 percentage points before cruising to victory in the General Election.
She never has faced a serious challenge since first winning the seat, running unopposed in 10 of the 14 subsequent Democratic primaries. The few times Jackson Lee faced a challenger, she never carried less than two thirds of the vote.
The challenge being mounted by Edwards could make for the toughest primary Jackson Lee has ever faced.
“Amanda Edwards is arguably the highest quality candidate that has made the decision to run against her,” Jones said. “(Jackson Lee) also with every passing year is a little more senior and detached from where the average voter is.”
On a phone call Monday afternoon, Edwards said district residents are tired of political dysfunction in Washington and ready for a fresh face representing them.
“We’ve gotten away from the work that people sent us to do in Washington and gotten embroiled in the fighting,” Edwards said. “You have to roll up your sleeves and be willing to get the work done, even if someone else might get the credit for it. I’m worried about the impact on my constituents, bottom line.”
Edwards said she is focusing her campaign on providing good governance to improve health care, infrastructure, housing affordability and disaster recovery in the congressional district.
While Jackson Lee has been focused on the mayor’s race, Edwards has raised more than $1 million in the first three months of her campaign, according to Federal Election Commission filings. She holds nearly $829,400 in cash on hand, $600,000 more than Jackson Lee has in her congressional campaign account.
Even Martin has more cash on hand than Jackson Lee, holding $50,000 more than the congresswoman’s $213,042, according to FEC filings.
Federal law prevents Jackson Lee from transferring the remaining funds from her mayoral campaign balance to her congressional campaign account.
Jackson Lee remains popular in the 18th Congressional District, particularly among Black Democrats, Jones said, but the mayoral election landslide proved she is largely unpopular throughout the city as a whole.
“The (mayoral) results signal Jackson Lee probably cannot count on Anglo Democrats for her primary,” Jones said. “While they aren’t the majority in her primary, they are a significant factor. The question for Amanda Edwards is, how much African American support can she peel away?”
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