社评1101 休斯敦市长选战正在加温中

休斯敦市长选战正在加温中

下届休斯敦市长市议员及赫里斯郡之各项选举初选即将结束，预计十一月七日举行大选后将会决定候选人之胜负。

民主选举是政治运作之常态，每四年都有各种不同之选举来决定何人是领导者，但是依照以往投票纪录，地方市政选举很少超过百分之十五的选民去投票。换言之，休斯敦市长得票率也不过百分之十五左右。

此次市长选举两位候选人都是在政坛上打滚数十年之老将，一位是在州议会超过四十多年的参议员惠特迈，一位是国会资深议员积克逊李。如果她当选将是另一位撑市府大位的非裔女性，而惠特迈将是白人重返市长宝座。

我们今天面临的重大挑战是社会治安及基础建设两大议题，今后四年之父母官必须面对解决，对於加强经济发展，我们已向新任市长建议早日设置轻工业区，向世界招商才是上策。

Houston Mayoral Election Is Heating Up

The early voting for Houston's next mayor and the Harris County bond issue is coming to an end. It is expected that the candidates' victory or defeat will be decided after the general election on November 7.

Elections are the norm for our political system. Every four years there are various elections that will decide who will be our leaders, but according past records, only 15% of the people actually go out and vote.

Both of Houston's mayoral candidates have been veterans of politics for decades. Senator Whitmire served in the Texas legislature for more than 40 years, while Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee is a senior member of the United States Congress.

The major challenges we are facing in the city today are public safety and the city's infrastructure. Other than that, we suggest that the new mayor must create a new light industrial zone to attract more new businesses to come to the city to promote new business and create more jobs.