HARRIS COUNTY, Texas — The Harris County Election Commission on April 19 unanimously voted to accept Elections Administrator Isabel Longoria’s resignation, effective July 1.
The bipartisan commission also unanimously passed all items related to hiring Longoria’s replacement.
Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo said the county will post that job description today. She hopes to have the new elections administrator here by the end of June.
Longoria had announced her plan to resign last month following the March 1 primary. The vote took place at a meeting Tuesday morning.
Motions from Harris County Republican Chair Cindy Siegel to instead make Longoria's resignation effective either immediately or June 1 failed.
Longoria had submitted her verbal resignation following issues and complaints with the 2022 primary elections.
"Today I am submitting my resignation, effective July 1," Longoria said following the primaries. "I think this date ensures that there is a presiding officer during the May and June elections and allows the election commission the time they need to find a replacement. I remain committed to the office and its mission and hope to aid in defeating harmful rhetoric to ensure successful elections in the future."
Longoria’s resignation after elections officials revealed the weekend following the primaries that around 10,000 mail ballots were not entered into the Election Night count.
The primary also saw longer-than-usual vote-counting times, staffing challenges, and equipment issues.
"The buck stops with me to address issues for voters and I did not meet my own standard or the standard set by commissioners," Longoria said.
Before Longoria's appearance, Judge Lina Hidalgo addressed last week's elections, saying that she had spoken with Longoria and expressed a desire for "change in leadership."
According to reporter Adam Bennett, who's monitoring commissioners court, Hidalgo said three things need to happen.
- Protect continuity with three elections coming up (May 7 special, May 24 runoff, November 8 general)
- Work with the elections commission to find new leadership after a “thorough search”
- Identify issues from the primary & find solutions
Harris County commissioners are looking for answers to what went wrong during the Texas primary election.
The Harris County GOP has been calling for Longoria's resignation since the primary elections.