Plummer elected Harris County judge, first African American in role

Who's involved

• Letitia Plummer · elected Harris County judge; former Houston City Council at-large member; dentist^[1]
• Orlando Sanchez · Republican candidate for Harris County judge; former Harris County Treasurer^[1]
• Lina Hidalgo · incumbent Democratic Harris County Judge for seven years^[1]

The facts

1. Plummer led Sanchez with 62% of early unofficial votes compared to Sanchez's 38% as of early Tuesday night, Nov. 3, 2026^[1]
2. Plummer is the first African American elected Harris County judge^[1]
3. Plummer started her political career with a bid for Congress in 2018^[1]
4. Plummer was elected to Houston City Council as at-large member in 2019^[1]
5. Plummer resigned from city council earlier in 2026 after announcing her intention to seek the county judge position^[1]
6. The Harris County Judge leads Commissioners Court, a five-member governing body that oversees county operations, deals with countywide road and infrastructure projects, sets yearly property taxes and makes funding decisions on flood control initiatives^[1]
7. Sanchez edged out competition for the Republican nomination earlier in 2026 and advanced through runoff elections against GOP challengers Warren Howell and Marty Lancton^[1]
8. Sanchez congratulated Plummer Tuesday night, Nov. 3, 2026^[1]

Who said what

• Sanchez This is a year and a half of hard work. I congratulate Letitia Plummer. We both worked very hard. I wish her the very best.^[1]
• Plummer criticized state government for exerting authority over Harris County, citing the governor's efforts to remove rainbow crosswalks from Montrose and the state takeover of Houston Independent School District^[1]
• Plummer called for working more closely with city government and Houston Mayor John Whitmire to offset costs on the county^[1]
• Sanchez called for routine audits of county departments, slashing property taxes and cutting costs to fix the county's budget issues^[1]