Letitia Plummer had the highest absence rate on Houston City Council

Democratic Harris County judge nominee Letitia Plummer missed 26% of the 166 Houston City Council sessions during her final term, the highest absence rate among council members during the period, a Houston Chronicle analysis found.

Regular attendance is pivotal for a county judge, experts said, not only because the judge presides over meetings of Commissioners Court but because an absence could mean missing a deciding vote on important budget, tax, emergency preparedness or flood control issues.

READ MORE: Letitia Plummer, Orlando Sanchez to face off in Harris County judge debate during early voting

“Voters expect elected officials to show up and participate in deliberations and cast votes,” said University of Houston political scientist Brandon Rottinghaus. “Missing meetings may raise questions about how consistently an elected official fulfills those responsibilities.”

Plummer was listed as absent 43 times from the start of her final term in 2024 through the end of 2025, when she left office. City records classified 27 of Plummer’s absences as personal business, 14 as city business and two as sick days. The review included all council gatherings during the period, including public comment sessions and special meetings.

Plummer’s campaign initially said it was confident the majority of the candidate’s absences were related to city business, and encouraged the Chronicle to request the official city secretary records. 

After the Chronicle clarified that its review was based on the secretary’s records, the Plummer campaign said it could not provide context for individual absences without specific dates, but said, “her work for constituents never stopped at the doors of City Hall.”

“What we can say is that Dr. Plummer was there for the votes that shaped this city, especially during natural disasters, when Houstonians needed their council members most,” Plummer’s campaign wrote in a statement. “Dr. Plummer believes showing up for the people you represent is fundamental to public service, and that’s the standard she will bring to Commissioners Court as county judge.”

In a statement after publication, the campaign stressed that Plummer operated her dental practice, which has locations in Houston and Pearland, throughout her time as a council member, a nominally part-time role. Plummer previously has said she does not plan to continue working if elected this fall. 

Plummer entered the race for county judge in July 2025, triggering a state law that required her to resign her seat. She remained in her position until her successor took office in January, however, having completed half of her four-year term. She first joined the council in January 2020.

The Chronicle’s analysis compares all council members’ attendance during the portion of the current council term that Plummer served, from the start of 2024 through the end of 2025.

READ MORE: Democrat Letitia Plummer leads Republican Orlando Sanchez in Harris County judge race, UH poll shows

Carroll Robinson, a political scientist at Texas Southern University and a former Houston City Council member, said regular attendance gives a county judge a chance to build working relationships with the four commissioners.

Still, he said, “I’m not sure council attendance is a one-to-one equivalence of how they will perform.”

Rottinghaus agreed that attendance alone does not show how effectively an elected official does their job. Constituent services, committee work and policy accomplishments also matter, as do the circumstances behind an absence. 

But Plummer’s absences on city council could create a vulnerability for her campaign, Rottinghaus said.

“She has talked about being present for the county and fighting on behalf of its citizens,” Rottinghaus said. “This potentially shows that she is not as engaged as she implies.”

A Chronicle analysis of attendance at Commissioners Court, tracking nearly 8,000 motions across 28 meetings in 2025, found County Judge Lina Hidalgo, who is not seeking reelection, missed far more votes than her colleagues. 

Plummer’s Republican opponent, Orlando Sanchez, also served on city council, from 1996 to 2002. Records show he missed 13% of the 180 council sessions held during his final two-year council term, in 2000 and 2001.

Sanchez was campaigning for mayor at the time. The resign to run law did not apply to him because council terms were then two years, not four.

Sanchez said in a statement that “the residents of Harris County deserve representatives who are present, prepared and accountable.”

”When elected officials show up consistently, they fulfill their duty to the people who entrusted them with the responsibility of participating fully in debates, votes, and oversight that shape our community’s future,” Sanchez said. “Throughout my time in public office, I have treated every meeting and session as an obligation that cannot be taken lightly.”

Early voting runs from Oct. 19 through Oct. 30. Election Day is Nov. 3.

Update (Oct. 16): This story has been updated with more information about Plummer’s dentistry practice and her stated plans for that practice if elected county judge.