By: Sheba Roy
The Acres Home community has long been a place where local politicians seek to gain support. Each election season, campaign signs appear en masse along W. Montgomery, eventually surrounding the Multiservice Center with the names of every candidate vying for the votes of Acres Homes residents. With the passing of the Honorable Congressman Sylvester Turner and Congress-woman Sheila Jackson Lee, the Congressional seat long held by the Democratic Party is now open, leaving many Congressional District 18 residents concerned that it could be filled by a Republican.
On Thursday, May 15, 2025, the Acres Home community attended a meet-and-greet featuring five declared candidates and one potential candidate who has yet to officially enter the race. The regularly scheduled monthly Super Neighborhood Council meet- ing was packed with Acres Home residents and visitors eager to hear from the lineup: Robert Slater, Amanda Edwards, Christian Menefee, Isaiah Martin, Corisha Rogers, and Jarvis Johnson. The event was organized by community newcomer Howard Chatman with United Through Change a Non-Profit Organization, with Super Neighborhood Council President and lifelong resident Latisha Grant serving as moderator.
The meet-and-greet quickly turned into a forum as Chatman posed pointed questions to each of the declared candidates and directly asked Johnson when he planned to officially enter the race.
Johnson responded that he was waiting for the community to devise a plan, stating, “Right now, I don’t need to file. Because the only thing I’d be filing for would be to raise money, and money has never won a race. It’s your plan, and it’s your opportunity to work hard. I want to talk to the people before I’m too presumptuous and say, ‘Vote for me because I’m the best candidate.’ I think it’s important that the community knows who you are before you
