Harris County, Texas, has never had a Black county judge. On Tuesday it elected Letitia Plummer, a Houston dentist, with 61% of the vote to Republican Orlando Sanchez’s 39%, according to unofficial results from the county clerk.
She is also the first Muslim county judge in the nation. She takes office Jan. 1, 2027, succeeding Lina Hidalgo, and will run the government of Texas’ largest county, including a budget of about $3 billion, flood control, public safety and the county’s response to hurricanes.
For Black Houston, the job is far more than a title. The county judge sits at the head of Commissioners Court, the body that decides how county money is spent on flood control, public safety and the budget. Residents of flood-prone neighborhoods have complained to that court for years, and construction on federally funded projects is not expected to begin until June.
Plummer was already a first. She was the first Muslim woman elected to the Houston City Council. In May she beat former Houston Mayor Annise Parker for the Democratic nomination, 51% to 49%, a margin of about 2,500 votes, in a runoff that few had expected her to win.
Her platform has a direct bearing on Black and immigrant families. She campaigned against the county’s 287(g) agreements with federal immigration enforcement, though Texas law limits what a county judge can do about them. She has also criticized the county’s contract for Flock Safety license plate cameras and called for changes to how they are used.
After the result she said she would serve every resident, including those who did not vote for her. Texas law limits what she can do on immigration, and the flood money is already slow. Plummer will be judged on whether she delivers on both, and Black voters who put a Black woman at the head of the county have every right to expect it. She takes the gavel Jan. 1.
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