Mayoral Game Changer —Why Nigerians Are Embracing John Whitmire for Houston’s Next Mayor

There are substantial reasons why this community is channeling its entire support to Sen. Whitmire. Mayor Brown’s endorsement may have triggered a wave of support and interest in the candidate by Africans and African Americans. Yet, there might be more reasons.

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The last time major African communities, dominated by Nigerians, united to support a mayoral candidate was during the electioneering campaign that ushered in the first African-American mayor of Houston, Dr. Lee Patrick Brown. Mayor Brown was re-elected twice to serve a maximum of three terms from 1998 to 2004. In each reelection bid, Africans campaigned vigorously on his behalf.   

Electioneering candidates for Houston elections can always count on the Nigerian community when it comes to grassroots poll support. The likes of Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee, outgoing mayor Sylvester Turner, Congressman Al Green, former Mayor Brown, and a long list of others have enjoyed such unprecedented support from the Nigerian community.  

Nigerians in Houston celebrating the Nigeria Independence Day. The Nigerians in Houston (NIH) for John Whitmire are rallying Nigerians and other African communities to galvanize city-wide support for Sen. Whitmire.

Consequently, in the upcoming mayoral race, some African community leaders are rallying decisive support for Houston’s Mayoral Candidate, John Whitmire. Led by business owners and community advocates, including Tony Nwadei, Ike Anya, Sylvan Odobulu, and Suzani Asmelash Grant, a group called Nigerians in Houston (NIH) for John Whitmire has concluded strategies for a grassroots vote-mobilization for the candidate. For weeks, they met day and night through both face-to-face collaborative meetings and Zoom. Now they are ready to hit the campaign ground and it appears they are not kidding.

There are substantial reasons why this community is channeling its entire support to Sen. Whitmire. Mayor Brown’s endorsement may have triggered a wave of support and interest in the candidate by Africans and African Americans. Yet, there might be more reasons.

Predominantly successful entrepreneurs, these prominent Nigerian community leaders, and influencers have always rallied financial and field support for candidates with vested interests in collaborating with the populace for development opportunities. Unfortunately, the community remains the least to be considered in significant matters of the government. An International Guardian’s previous editorial cited how most of those leaders visit the African communities to attend events and take photos with excited guests whereas significant matters of governance are totally snubbed. For instance, Mayor Turner just concluded a controversial trip to Africa where he spent only one day in Nigeria – Africa’s most populous country and the United States’ most viable trade partner in the continent. To make it unacceptably ridiculous, no Nigerian made his long list of delegates.

Consequently, in August 2022, Mayor Turner hosted the City’s first-ever Houston-Africa Energy Summit, featuring African Heads of State, African Ministers, Houston-based energy CEOs, and business leaders from the African continent and the Greater Houston Area. Unfortunately, and more disappointedly, Nigeria, Africa’s largest crude oil producer was not represented at this event.

“That was ridiculous,” said John Oladapo Awoola, an oil and gas entrepreneur based in Houston and Lagos. I actually read about that event on the Internet, and I tell you that these folks are taking us for granted. How can this City host such a conference without fairly engaging those that matter?”, he said. He continued, “It boils down to aligning ourselves with leaders that respect our interests, not those that would come here to party with us.”

Nigeria remained the leading oil producer in Africa as of 2022. Oil production amounted to roughly 69 million metric tons in the country. Libya, Algeria, and Angola followed, each with an above 50 million metric tons output. In the same year, the overall production of oil in Africa, including crude oil, shale oil, oil sands, and NGLs, reached 332.3 million metric tons, 3.76 percent less than in 2021. Therefore, any meaningful city leadership must be familiar with these trends.

“We are looking for something very different this time,” said a Houston-based Nigerian healthcare worker, Ephraim who identified himself as a Whitmire supporter. “We are sick and tired of our politicians coming here to take photos with us. I have lots of photos taken with the Jackson-Lees, the Turners, Garcias, and so on. Honestly, I am now realizing that those are completely unimportant. We need those who would take us seriously. If you go to Bellaire and Sharpstown, you see how they pay much attention to the Asian communities – then when you come to Bissonnette, all you see is crime and prostitution. We want solutions. What drove me away from Jackson Lee to Sen. Whitmire was Whitmire’s position on fighting crime. You won’t understand until you come to the Bissonnet area where we have our businesses,” he said.

Mayor Brown’s endorsement may have triggered a wave of support and interest in the candidate by Africans and African Americans. Yet, there might be more reasons.

Africans in Houston, especially in the Southwest are concerned about an alarming crime rate. Not just crime – they are also dealing with street prostitution, which has persisted for years unchallenged. As chair of the Texas Senate Criminal Justice Committee, who has championed strong, anti-crime measures, Sen. Whitmire has vowed to increase the number of police officers on the street and strengthen Houston’s Community Policing Program while keeping violent criminals behind bars and illegal guns off the streets.

The consistent governance lapses and the scorn of the African community, in general, are what inspired the Nigerians in Houston (NIH) for John Whitmire. The purpose according to handlers, is to rally around Nigerians and other African communities to galvanize city-wide support for Sen. Whitmire. They are raising funds, they are gathering volunteers to walk the streets, and they have vowed to carry their campaign beyond the electoral finishing lines.

The last time there was a major collaboration between the City of Houston and the African community was during Mayor Brown’s regime. He was not interested in coming to social events and taking photos but focused on economic empowerment and development possibilities. Nigerians and members of other African countries were appointed to key city government positions and parastatals. In addition, Mayor Brown’s trip to Africa was economically lucrative. He didn’t go for sightseeing. He took business folks who invested in the continent. 

This might explain why his endorsement of Sen. Whitmire inspired a population of African and African-American voters into action. Brown in his own words, stated, “As Houston’s first African-American police chief and mayor, I am proud to endorse Senator John Sen. Whitmire to be Houston’s next mayor… He was always someone I could count on to help, whether it was during my campaigns or during my tenure in office. Sen. Whitmire has always fought for public safety and equality. I will be voting for Senator Sen. Whitmire for mayor, and I ask all Houstonians to join me.”

Whitmire, who served as a State Representative for 10 years and State Senator for 40, has vowed to promote the growth of minority and women-owned businesses, ensure that historically forgotten neighborhoods receive desired services, protect the laws and ordinances that encourage diversity and equity, and create strategies to facilitate an open dialogue with people from all parts of our city to truly understand their concerns.

The Nigerians in Houston (NIH) for Sen. Whitmire, armed with a constructive message about how this candidate will make a difference, not just in Houston but also in the African community, has taken their gospel to the streets to woo voters. They are rallying community leaders and influencers not just to vote for their candidate but also to work the polls. “We did it for Mayor Brown, and it worked for our businesses and families, and we are ready to do it for Sen. Whitmire,” said Thankgod, a Nigerian entrepreneur who owns a real estate company.

Currently, it appears all fingers point to Sen. Whitmire as Houston’s next mayor. In the latest poll conducted by the Hobby School Survey of the University of Houston, the race will be close, with about one-third of likely voters opting to vote for state Sen. Whitmire whereas another third expecting to vote for U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee. However, in the event of a runoff in December, the gap widens dramatically, with Sen. Whitmire holding an 18-point lead in a one-to-one matchup.