Houston mayor's race heads to overflow between United States Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee and state Sen. John Whitmire

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HOUSTON (AP)-- The race for Houston mayor headed to a runoff Tuesday night between U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee and state Sen. John Whitmire, 2 Democrats who breezed past a wide field of prospects in a race dominated by issues of criminal activity, collapsing facilities and possible budget shortfalls.

If chosen, Jackson Lee would be Houston's very first Black female mayor, a meaningful modification for America's fourth-largest city. Since 1995, she has actually represented Houston in Congress. Whitmire has actually lapped his competitors in fundraising after five decades in the Texas Legislature, where he has actually helped drive tough-on-crime policies while likewise casting himself as a reformer.

The runoff will be Dec. 9.

Jackson Lee informed supporters Tuesday night that she's focused on offering the requirements of children and households in addition to prioritizing public security, developing more tasks for residents and showing she can be a mayor "for all of the people."

Whitmire informed his fans that while he's focused on bringing attention to issues citizens have more than infrastructure and public security, the city's "best days are in front people."

Jackson Lee and Whitmire-- two of Houston's primary political fixtures-- spent months dominating the open mayoral race that drew 17 candidates on the tally and a write-in prospect. Neither might pass the threshold of more than 50% of the vote, which is essential to prevent an overflow. In early inventories, Whitmire had about 43% of the vote to Jackson-Lee's 36%.

Jackson Lee, 73, and Whitmire, 74, have promoted their experience in a race to lead among the youngest significant cities in the U.S

. Their high profiles and fundraising expertise left the other candidates scrambling to get any traction in the race.

About 2 weeks before the election, Jackson Lee's project had to compete with the release of an unverified audio recording, which is supposed to capture her berating staff members with a barrage of curs.

Flourishing development over the last years has caused municipal headaches however has actually also turned the Houston location into an expanding fortress for Texas Democrats. Although the mayoral race is nonpartisan, the majority of the candidates are Democrats.

Voting in the Houston area, a Democratic stronghold in GOP-led Texas, was under extra scrutiny on Tuesday following a brand-new law signed this year by Republican Gov. Greg Abbott. The law clears the method for the state to take control of ballot in Harris County, which includes Houston, if it determines there is a "recurring pattern of issues" with elections. Another brand-new state law got rid of the county's elections administrator and transferred the duty to other local authorities.

Harris County election officials said there were some problems at polling locations on Tuesday, including issues with voting devices, which can cause long lines, and tally scanners. None of the issues severely disrupted ballot on Tuesday and 93% of the county's 701 ballot centers were open by 7 a.m., authorities said.

Among the authorities now responsible for running regional elections, Harris County Clerk Teneshia Hudspeth, said her office had a strategy in place to deal with Tuesday's issues, including appointing a service technician to every ballot location and quickly dealing with calls for help.

" Today, I feel like it's been relatively smooth," Hudspeth said. "Today has actually been a good day."

Houston and the state's other big, Democratic-led cities are also challenging a brand-new law that erodes their power to enforce regional guidelines on whatever from tenant evictions to worker sick leave.

Whitmire and Jackson Lee are looking for to change Mayor Sylvester Turner, who has actually served eight years and can't run once again since of term limits.

Houston's mayor will lead what is considered one of the country's most varied cities. Of the city's 2.3 million citizens, 45% are Latino, 23% are Black and 24% are white. One in every four Houston citizens was born outside the U.S.

Known as the energy capital of the world, Houston's economy has long been connected mainly to the oil industry. The city is working to become a leader in the shift to cleaner energy. Like other big U.S. cities, Houston is likewise handling an absence of budget-friendly real estate and issues among locals over growing spaces between the rich and bad.