John Whitmire, a state senator representing the city, defeated former Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee by 30 percentage points in a Saturday special runoff election to become the next mayor of Houston, a fate that was likely sealed when Jackson Lee’s campaign ran a television ad telling voters that the end of early voting was December 7th when in fact, it had been two days before, CBS News reports.
While the ad was quickly pulled, airing it caused confusion and accusations at early voting centers by voters who learned the incorrect deadline. As with most special elections, turnout was light: about 21% of eligible voters cast a ballot. And Jackson Lee, a 30-year veteran of Congress, walked into the race with name recognition and endorsements from Hillary Clinton and Nancy Pelosi, but could not overcome Whitmire’s local ground game, which mobilized supporters to vote during the eligible period.