City News

Hobby school hosting mayoral debate on Tuesday

The mayoral houston debate and luncheon will benefit the Leland Fellows program. | Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

The debate and luncheon will benefit the Leland Fellows program. | Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

The Houston mayoral debate on Tuesday will be hosted by the Hobby School of Public Affairs, according to a news release.

The debate will be held in conjunction with the Hobby School of Public Affairs’ annual charity luncheon and will benefit the Leland Fellows program, which provides stipends and housing to undergraduate students who will work at a full-time internship in Washington D.C.

The mission behind Leland Fellows is to provide internship opportunities to students who can not afford to work without compensation.

Since the debate doubles as a fundraiser, attendance is not free, but anyone interested in going can purchase a ticket or a table to watch and support the school.

The debate will be held downtown at the Wortham Center and is the second one in the run up to the election this November. Top candidates include Mayor Sylvester Turner and Tony Buzbee, both UH alumni.

The race for mayor is technically nonpartisan, but Turner worked as a Democrat in the Texas House of Representatives prior to becoming mayor.

Incumbent Turner touts his accomplishments in office include filling potholes, pushing for more public transportation, helping balance the city’s budget and his handling of Hurricane Harvey.

Challenger Tony Buzbee wants to increase government transparency, put more officers on the streets and secure pay parity between police officers and firefighters.

The debate will clarify candidate stances, which will help Houstonians decide who to vote for come election day on Nov. 5.

“I think that it’s incredibly important to pay attention to local politics,” said exercise science and psychology freshman Seun Odufuye. “It’s important to know which mayor to vote for because they are the ones that are going to implement the policies that directly affect us.”

Political science professor Richard Murray and KHOU reporter Shern-Min Chow will moderate the debate.

[email protected]

Leave a Comment