Judge receives ethics penalty after endorsing candidate

Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo violated state law by endorsing a candidate challenging District Attorney Kim Ogg during a news conference that used public funds, the Texas Ethics Commission found this week.

Hidalgo endorsed Sean Teare, Ogg’s opponent in the March Democratic primary, at a November news conference held at the Harris County Administration Building. Hidalgo has repeatedly criticized Ogg, a fellow Democrat with whom she often feuds.

“I’m ready to face her on March 5 and I’m excited to know she has such a fantastic opponent,” Hidalgo said at a press conference.

Ogg’s office successfully sought indictments against three former Hidalgo aides, accusing them of steering a county contract to a political consulting firm run by a Democratic strategist. Their cases have not yet gone to trial.

Hidalgo praised Teare during the news conference, calling him “respected” and “very experienced.”

The remarks prompted a complaint filed with the Texas Ethics Commission, the state’s campaign finance watchdog. The complaint accused Hidalgo of using county funds and resources to canvass for a political candidate in violation of state law.

Teare defeated Ogg and will face Republican Dan Simons in November.

Hidalgo admitted she used public funds and agreed to pay a $500 fine, according to a resolution issued Tuesday. Hidalgo said Wednesday that the commission “requested a fine of $500 after determining that the situation was a minimal issue.”

“I am certain that everything I did and said was appropriate, but rather than spend thousands of dollars and valuable time, we agreed to a minimal settlement so I can focus my energy on the needs of Harris County,” Hidalgo wrote on social media X.

Hidalgo and Ogg have been at odds publicly since Hidalgo first took office in 2019, most prominently over the investigation into Hidalgo’s former employees. Hidalgo has repeatedly defended the workers and criticized the investigation as politically motivated. The investigation was one of the factors that motivated the Harris County Democratic Party to formally reprimand Ogg.

Ogg defended her loyalty to Democrats. But earlier this year, she placed the future of the investigation into Hidalgo’s former associates in the hands of the Texas Attorney General’s Office — headed by Ken Paxton, a Republican — in an effort to keep the case alive after she leaves office. Teare said he would take the district attorney’s office out of the case.

Texas Republicans have often sought to undermine various efforts by Harris County officials since Hidalgo took office and the county became more Democratic — attacking the county’s efforts to improve voting access in the 2020 election and examining public safety spending.

Paxton’s office sued the county earlier this year to eliminate its Guaranteed Income program, an initiative funded by the federal government to provide monthly financial assistance to some of the county’s poorest families. The Texas Supreme Court recently signaled it would likely invalidate the program.