Houston Mayoral Runoff Election Goes Down to the Wire
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HOUSTON — Voters in the nation’s fourth-largest city on Saturday were choosing between a black state lawmaker and a wealthy developer in a mayoral runoff election. Recent polls indicate that the nonpartisan race is a tossup.
A victory for Sylvester Turner, 37, a two-term legislator, would make him the city’s first black mayor.
Bob Lanier, 66, is a longtime government insider and former Texas Highway Commission chairman making his first run at elective office.
The winner will succeed incumbent Kathy Whitmire, who finished third in balloting Nov. 5 as she tried for a record sixth consecutive term.
Lanier topped that race, but his 44% of the vote fell short of the 50% needed to avoid a runoff. Turner received 35% and Whitmire had 20%.
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