Candidate filing open now in Houston city elections after election rules update
A candidate filing period for the city's Oct. 7 election runs between July 1 and 15.
HOUSTON – Individuals who want to run for office in Houston this year must submit a filing packet between now and July 15, under an election calendar update approved by the City Council last month.
The update moves the filing period forward by about 20 days and gives prospective candidates approximately four additional days to submit their paperwork. Previous law provided an 11-day window, with filings opening 78 days before the city election, a date that typically fell in late July.
Starting now, the period is July 1–15 each year, according to the new rule. Election Day is the first Tuesday in October under city law and falls on Oct. 7 this year.
City law requires the city clerk to publish a notice of offices to be filled on the city’s website at least 10 days before the filing period opens. The 2025 candidate information, including a notice of offices to be filled, was posted on the city’s website at about 9 a.m. Tuesday morning.
Houston City Clerk Tani Weiber Schoneman said she did not post a candidate notice before Tuesday morning, but did post an election calendar with the city's correct dates. The calendar shows it was updated June 30.
Candidate filings for Palmer and Wasilla city elections will open from July 21 to Aug. 1. Election Day in those cities is also Oct. 7. The last day to register to vote in those elections is Sept. 7.
The measure updating Houston’s filing timeline was approved 5–2 by the Houston City Council during a regular meeting June 12. Council members Sandy McDonald and Lisa Johansen voted no because the measure, which included a variety of technical and timing updates, also reduces the number of days before elections the city is required to publish notices from 30 to 20.
Houston Mayor Carter Cole said he introduced the measure in part to reduce the amount of work the city clerk and staff must do to prepare for and conduct each election.
“One of the reasons we were trying to streamline this and take away additional clerk duties,” Cole said during a regular City Council meeting on May 8.
Individuals who wish to run for Houston City Council must be registered to vote in the state and must have been residents of the city for at least one year prior to the election, according to city law.
Would-be candidates must file a declaration of candidacy form during the filing period and pay a $25 fee, according to the city’s website. The clerk will review the application and respond within four days, the website says.
Houston City Council candidates are exempt from a state campaign finance law requiring business and financial interest disclosures. Candidates who plan to spend or raise more than $5,000 for their campaigns must file a series of reports with the state’s Public Offices Commission.
Three Houston City Council seats are up for reelection this year: Seat E, currently held by Council Member David Childs; Seat F, held by McDonald; and Seat G, held by Council Member Laurie Faubert.
Council members Childs and Faubert plan to run for reelection, they said in interviews Monday. McDonald has not yet decided whether to run, she said.
-- Contact Amy Bushatz at contact@matsusentinel.com
This story was updated July 1 to include comment from Houston City Clerk Tani Weiber Schoneman and candidate information posted to the city's website Tuesday morning.
