After nearly two decades in congress Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Texas, is retiring from her position in Congress next cycle and will run for Houston mayor.
“Sheila Jackson Lee wants to come home to be your mayor for the city of Houston,” Jackson Lee reportedly said during a church event live-streamed Sunday. “I will not be able to do it without each and every one of you.”
Jackson Lee currently represents Texas’ 18th Congressional District, where she has served for more than 28 years.
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The longtime congresswoman, who said that racism is a national security threat, was first elected in 1994.
Jackson Lee recently introduced the controversial Leading Against White Supremacy Act, legislation that would criminalize forms of hate speech, opening the door to criminal penalties for hateful social media content.
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She has also been an outspoken critic in recent years of largely Republican-backed state level bills aimed at election integrity, and was arrested at a protest in Washington, D.C. in 2021 calling for the passage of a federal voting rights legislation.
There are already more than 10 declared candidates in the race, most of them Democrats, but Jackson Lee’s name recognition could play a major role in her candidacy. The filing deadline for candidates to enter the race is Aug. 21.
Current Houston mayor Sylvester Turner is term limited and not able to run for re-election.
