A Labor Day night debate between the Democrat and Republican party nominees for Harris County judge was cut short and is now being rescheduled, with organizers citing technical difficulties tied to unexpectedly high viewer interest.
The virtual debate matched Democrat Letitia Plummer against Republican Orlando Sanchez.
On Tuesday, the three sponsoring groups, LULAC Sixty, The Menudo Club, and the Culture Commission Coalition, released a joint statement announcing the debate would be rescheduled, with the date, time, and venue to come later.
The groups said the decision followed “an influx of unexpected volume and technical difficulties” that arose while preparing for the event. A spokesperson for the coalition said, “the interest and excitement surrounding this race have been tremendous,” and that getting the event right mattered more than rushing it back on the calendar.
Video of the broadcast tells a more complicated story than a simple glitch.
During the debate, moderator Stephania Jimenez said she could hear both candidates, Sanchez said he could hear both Jimenez and Plummer, and viewers following the livestream reported no trouble hearing any of the three participants.
Plummer, however, said partway through the debate that she could no longer hear Sanchez. She left the call shortly after and did not return. Her campaign later said she rejoined through a separate link after production staff attempted to address technical problems, but that the debate did not resume publicly.
After leaving the debate, Plummer addressed supporters at her campaign watch party in a video later posted to both her campaign and city council Facebook accounts, offering her own account of what happened.
She told those gathered that she and Sanchez had drawn numbers before the debate to determine speaking order, and that she always picks “the endcaps,” meaning the first or last number. Plummer said Sanchez “was disappointed” with the draw and “decided he wanted to redraw,” framing his reaction as the reason the debate did not continue. “I guess he was like already knew I was ready for him,” she said.
Nothing in the broadcast indicates Sanchez objected to the speaking order or asked to redraw once the debate was underway. Sanchez spoke and remained audible to Jimenez and to viewers throughout.
Jimenez also addressed the interruption on social media, writing that the debate had been postponed “because of technical issues” and that an update would follow. The post did not elaborate on what those issues were or why only one participant reported being unable to hear the other.
The coalition’s statement thanked the public for its engagement with the race and said updates on the new debate date would be shared through each organization’s official channels and social media as details are finalized.
Sanchez’s campaign told Texas Scorecard, “Unfortunately, Letitia Plummer’s campaign failed to ensure the necessary technical arrangements were in place for her participation, resulting in repeated disconnections that disrupted the debate.”
“Rather than take responsibility for its lack of preparation, the Plummer campaign is now attempting to shift blame and rewrite what happened,” the spokesperson added. “Orlando Sanchez looks forward to debating Ms. Plummer again and giving Harris County voters the opportunity to hear a clear contrast between the candidates—including Ms. Plummer’s record of higher taxes and misplaced priorities.”
A Plummer campaign spokesperson told Texas Scorecard, “Orlando decided to take his ball and go home. Dr. Plummer came to play.”
In a subsequent public statement, Plummer’s campaign disputed the account that she abandoned the debate because she could not hear Sanchez. The campaign said Plummer initially experienced audio problems, could hear the debate producer but not the moderator or Sanchez, and temporarily logged out and rejoined at the producer’s direction.
According to the campaign, Plummer answered two questions and gave rebuttals after reconnecting, but the discussion was not being livestreamed. The campaign said organizers then sent a new link and Plummer rejoined by 6:52 p.m., along with the moderator and production team.
The campaign said Plummer then waited in a virtual lobby for about 40 minutes while organizers attempted to reconnect Sanchez. They alleged that Sanchez declined to rejoin and requested the debate be rescheduled with conditions. The campaign also said Sanchez did not attend a planning call the previous Friday, when organizers outlined the debate format and planned a coin toss to determine speaking order.
“We followed every rule. We stayed ready to debate the entire evening,” the campaign stated. “Orlando chose to leave.” The campaign said Plummer then joined an in-person campaign event with more than 70 supporters and called for the candidates to debate live and in person.
The debate was one of several joint appearances scheduled for Plummer and Sanchez ahead of the Nov. 3 General Election. The two are running to succeed Democrat Lina Hidalgo as Harris County judge, a position that presides over the five-member Commissioners Court.
Plummer, a dentist and former Houston City Council member, won a narrow Democrat primary runoff over former Houston Mayor Annise Parker in May.
Sanchez, a former Houston City Council member and Harris County treasurer, won his Republican runoff by a wide margin.
The two appeared together without incident at a Greater Houston Women’s Chamber of Commerce forum in late August, and campaign finance reports filed in July showed Sanchez had outraised Plummer by roughly $35,000 over a six-week period.
Plummer’s campaign finances have also faced scrutiny during the General Election campaign. A complaint filed with the Texas Ethics Commission in July accused her of seven campaign finance violations, including improperly paying a family member with campaign funds, accepting prohibited corporate contributions, and failing to properly disclose payments to her dentistry practice. Plummer said at the time that her campaign was reviewing the allegations and would amend its reports if necessary.
She has since amended five campaign finance filings. The corrected reports reduced her previously reported contributions by roughly $58,000 and addressed several disputed transactions and reporting discrepancies. Plummer has attributed the problems to errors in classification and reporting. It remains unclear whether the Texas Ethics Commission will take formal action on the complaint.
