I was searching for a take this morning, then voila, courtesy of Evan Mintz and his Chron E-Board team, they served me up a doozy. See the take they just put out:

During the 2022 election cycle, Tony Award-winning hip-hopera savant Lin-Manuel Miranda traveled down to Houston to support Lina Hidalgo’s campaign for reelection. So we can only presume that the county judge is familiar with song number 32 on the Hamilton soundtrack, “One Last Time.” That’s the one where George Washington decides to step down from office after two terms.

In fact, we imagine the county judge might be listening to the song on repeat.

Hidalgo has the lowest net approval rating of any Harris County elected official, according to a new poll from the University of Houston Hobby School of Public Affairs. Impressive challengers are lining up against her in the Democratic primary, including former Houston Mayor Annise Parker and Houston City Council Member Letitia Plummer. There would be no shame in exiting on her own terms after eight years in office, like Washington, rather than slogging through another difficult reelection campaign.

Whatever Hidalgo decides, voters need to know. And soon. Fundraising requests are hitting inboxes. Endorsements are rolling out. Potential candidates are waiting in the wings. Former U.S. Rep. Erica Lee Carter has explicitly said that she will step up if Hidalgo doesn’t run. No doubt that others will file if the Democratic primary becomes an open race. Candidates deserve a full campaign season, and engaged citizens deserve some information about who their options are. Democrats already learned their lesson in 2024 about what happens when an incumbent clings on for too long.

Make no mistake, Hidalgo could still be a formidable opponent. She has a track record of surprising electoral success. Her campaign coffers are flush with cash after being reimbursed for legal fees after charges were dismissed in a case against her staff for an alleged bid-rigging scheme. And, as her political rivals often forget, the young, Hispanic policy wonk has a base of dedicated fans. High disapproval numbers get the headline, but you don’t have to dig deep in the UH poll to see Hidalgo also has the second-highest approval numbers among county officials — the sort of true believers who reliably show up for low-turnout midterms and partisan primaries. 

At the same time, Hidalgo is often her own worst enemy. Unlike county commissioners, the position of county judge doesn’t oversee massive budgets. The position’s power lies in the bully pulpit, a skill the 34-year-old politician has still yet to master. We’ve seen past county judges use their authority to unite countywide coalitions around key issues such as flooding. Hidalgo, on the other hand, has a track record of getting crossways with not only conservatives, but also with her fellow Democrats on Commissioners Court.

At this point in her political career, the progressive standard-bearer should have long been able to brag about her vast accomplishments in office. How she led an effort to use COVID-19 funds to support social services like early childcare. How families across the county have benefited from this ambitious vision of local government. How voters now have a duty to keep her in office to maintain and expand these programs. 

Instead, only as the federal funds reach their end has Hidalgo stepped up to make her case to the public. Earlier this month she went on ABC 13 to propose a tax increase to continue the county’s Early REACH childcare program. The idea was a surprise to Commissioners Lesley Briones, Adrian Garcia and Tom Ramsey — not to mention Harris County taxpayers.

Here is the entire E-Board take: Is Lina Hidalgo running for a third term as Harris County Judge?.

Folks know that Commentary runs or helps run political campaigns. I certainly know a lot more about running campaigns than the Chron E-Board team combined.

The Harris County Democratic Party Primary is about seven months away.  Harris County Democratic Party Primary voters really don’t give a rat’s arse who is a candidate today for Harris County Judge. Political funders are probably anxious, so too for Democratic Party activists and consultants, as well as political players, including the Chron E-Board. And yes, I consider the Chron E-Board players, and you should too. Nothing is wrong with that.

I don’t need to remind folks that Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo is the incumbent. She is doing her job. Yeah, she has recently proposed a property tax increase and MAGA has pounced on her for this. Oh, the hypocrisy. MAGA is running up trillions of dollars in debt at the federal government level, but let’s go after Judge Hidalgo instead.

Folks were hoping to make the COVID contract mess a huge scandal and all it ended up being was a contract mess that just about every governmental entity regularly experiences.

Right now, Judge Hidalgo is the candidate to beat. She is a favorite in the Harris County Democratic Party Primary, and she would be the favorite in the November 2026 general election. I get why the E-Board wants her to announce her intentions. I must respectfully disagree with the E-Board.

Judge Hidalgo probably has her timeline for making an announcement. As far as I am concerned, she could probably wait until mid-October to let folks know.

Right now, local Democrats are pretty much focused on MAGA’s mid-decade redistricting sham. Come September and October, the Congressional District 18 Special Election will garner our attention. 

We are also in the hurricane season.

As far as I am concerned, Judge Hidalgo can take her time, do her job, and at some point, let us know if she will seek reelection.

The featured photo is from earlier this year when the contract mess investigation ended.

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The bad news. We have now lost five in a row. The good news. Jeremy will make a rehab start in Sugar Land today. Dollar Dog Night at Daikin Park this evening.