Plummer says GOP anti-Islam attacks won't distract from county issues

Letitia Plummer is trying to turn the Harris County judge race back to the basics: what residents pay, how safe they feel, and whether county government delivers. The Houston dentist and former at-large Houston City Council member said Republican attacks tied to Islam are aimed at dividing voters, not solving problems in a county that now has an estimated 5,009,302 residents and some of the heaviest governing responsibilities in Texas.

If elected in November, Plummer would become the county’s first Muslim woman to hold the job. The Harris County judge chairs Commissioners Court, which helps set the budget, tax rates and county policy, and oversees major responsibilities that reach into emergency management, infrastructure and the Harris County Flood Control District. In a county this large, the office affects everything from storm preparation to the tax bill.

Plummer announced her campaign for county judge in July 2025 and then won the Democratic nomination in the May 26 runoff, defeating former Houston Mayor Annise Parker. She now faces Republican Orlando Sanchez in the November general election. The race has drawn extra attention because Plummer already made history in city politics, becoming the first Muslim woman elected to Houston City Council when she took office on Jan. 2, 2020, and serving through 2025.

The political backdrop is not hard to miss. Harris County is 45.0% Hispanic or Latino, 20.9% Black and 8.0% Asian, according to Census Bureau QuickFacts, a mix that makes coalition politics especially important in a county where turnout often turns on practical concerns rather than identity politics. Plummer’s campaign has also received an endorsement from the Council on American-Islamic Relations, a move that conservative critics seized on as part of the broader backlash now surrounding the race.

Plummer’s challenge is to keep that backlash from swallowing the debate. Her path to victory will likely depend on whether voters decide that affordability, public safety and county services matter more than the culture-war messaging now being pushed at her. In a county of more than 5 million people, the next judge will help decide how Harris County spends its money, sets its tax rates and responds when residents need government to work.