I need your help to win a federal lawsuit against the state of Texas and change this unjust, unconstitutional law which disenfranchises felons who have changed their lives.

On July 26th, 2023, the City of Houston rejected my application to appear on the 2023 ballot as a Mayoral candidate because of an 18-year old non-violent felony charge. For 3 weeks I called lawyers and civil rights organizations seeking help to remain on the ballot.

Unfortunately, on August 21st I was officially removed from the ballot as a Mayoral candidate.

I am being punished for an 18-year old non-violent arrest for drug possession when I was 20 years old. I did my time and have been fighting for my community as an activist and journalist for the last 14 years. I decided to run in 2019 as a candidate for Mayor of Houston and did so again in 2023. However, this time the City of Houston denied my ballot application using a faulty interpretation of Texas' Election Code (more details below).

I believe we can defeat and change this unconstitutional law by challenging it in a federal court. According to my attorney, Keith Gross, it's going to take around $20,000 to fight this all the way.

Please consider making a donation so we can change this horrible law!

 Together, we can change Texas law and make history. A victory would mean that people like me, who have changed their lives, can run for office and attempt to improve their local communities.

Here's a detailed explanation of Texas law:

Texas Election Code regarding felons running for office has long been a subject of debate and confusion. It states that individuals who want to run office must have not been “finally convicted of a felony from which the person has not been pardoned or otherwise released from the resulting disabilities”. It is that phrase “resulting disabilities” which has caused much confusion in recent years.

Some have interpreted it to mean that when a felon finishes parole and no longer owes money to the state of Texas they are “released from resulting disabilities”. For example, in 2018 a felon filed to run for Austin City Council and – after public outcry – the City Clerk approved his ballot application. He said he believed completion of his sentence and parole relieved him of the resulting disabilities.

In 2019, I ran for Mayor of Houston under a similar premise and was allowed to stay on the ballot through November. In the 2019 District B City Council race, Cynthia Bailey also ran despite a previous felony conviction for theft. Bailey actually made the run off in her race and the 3rd place candidate filed a lawsuit which dragged on for more than a year. Ultimately, a judge decided to allow her to stay on the ballot (while not ruling on the specific language of the election code or her legitimacy as a candidate).

This brought more attention to the issue and in 2021 Texas Representative Jarvis Johnson introduced HB 1316 in an attempt to clarify the language. Unfortunately, Johnson’s bill did not get any traction, but another bill introduced by Rep. Ryan Guillien did and it became law. HB 4555 added a line to the Texas Election Code which said that “a person who has been convicted of a felony shall include in the application proof that the person is eligible for public office”. Unfortunately, it didn’t specify what counts as proof or clarify the resulting disabilities phrase.

It is this sentence from HB 4555 which the City of Houston added to the requirements to run for office in 2023, as well as a notice stating “release from or successful completion of probation or parole does not make a convicted felon eligible for a place on the ballot or able to hold elected office”.

That second line doesn’t come from the Texas Election Code or HB 4555. Instead, it is a direct quote of a 2019 legal opinion by Republican Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. The opinion was released after Paxton was asked directly whether or not felons should be able to run for office. It suggests that while felons do get a restoration of voting rights once they complete their sentence and parole, they do not get their full citizenship rights reinstated. This includes the right to run for office.

Ironically, Paxton himself is facing several felonies. However, I imagine he would have a much easier time getting a pardon from the Governor of Texas than someone like myself.

The only other path offered to felons interested in running for office is known as judicial clemency. Paxton acknowledges this path in his legal opinion but several Texas courts believe felons only have 30 days to apply for judicial clemency once they are released from prison or parole. I can say from experience no one tells you about this alleged time limit.

The idea that I am eternally robbed of my constitutional right to freedom of expression and freedom of association because of an 18-year old non-violent charge is baffling and that is why we are filing a federal lawsuit against the state of Texas.