Harris County judge debate implodes after 10 minutes on air

The race for Harris County judge received a dose of controversy Monday night following the postponement of a scheduled debate. Democrat Letitia Plummer and Republican Orlando Sanchez are the nominees for the November election to replace outgoing county judge Lina Hidalgo. The pair of candidates were scheduled to participate in a virtual debate streamed on the KPRC 2 website and on YouTube, with the debate set to start at 6:30 p.m. CT. Before the debate, Plummer and Sanchez participated in a virtual "coin toss." Plummer won the toss, giving her the opportunity to deliver the first opening statement and receive the first question. But technical difficulties began during the post-coin-toss sound check. According to Plummer's campaign, she initially could not hear Sanchez or moderator Stephania Jimenez. She logged off and rejoined the virtual meeting, after which she could hear both Sanchez and Jimenez. But the stream then went offline, prompting a pause for both parties after 10 minutes of debate unheard by the public. Jonathan Hildner, Plummer's senior advisor and general consultant, says Plummer then waited 40 minutes for a new stream to resume her debate vs. Sanchez. That stream never arrived. Plummer's campaign says it was communicated by debate producers that Sanchez did not want to continue with the debate on Monday, though his camp was willing to reschedule and restructure the debate. Chron could not reach Sanchez's campaign as of Tuesday morning. No rescheduled debate has been announced. Plummer addressed a group of roughly 70 volunteers and supporters Monday night, in which she claimed Sanchez was both peeved with the coin-toss outcome and the tenor of the short-lived debate. "My opponent was so scared to debate me tonight that he quit before it even started," Plummer wrote on X. "The County Judge is the last line of defense when disaster hits Harris County. You don't get to run from that. If he quit on this, he will quit on you when it matters most." Jimenez confirmed the technical difficulties in a Facebook post shared Monday night. Debate organizers also released a statement. "LULAC Sixty, the Menufo Club and the Culture Commission Coalition announced today that the Labor Day Main Event Harris County Judge Debate will be rescheduled," the joint announcement read. "The decision comes as a result of an influx of unexpected volume and technical difficulties that arose in preparation for the event. "A new date for the debate between the candidates will be announced soon." Plummer served on the Houston City Council beginning in 2020, and she announced her campaign to succeed Hidalgo last July. Sanchez is the current Harris County Treasurer, in office since 2007. Sanchez cruised to the Republican nomination for Harris County judge, while Plummer narrowly defeated Annise Parker, the former Houston mayor, for the Democratic nomination.