Houston 80-20 PAC Hosts Endorsed Candidates Recognition Dinner at Karahi Point, Stafford
Elected officials and candidates meet Asian American and immigrant communities ahead of the 3 November general election
Houston 80-20 Asian American Political Action Committee | Unity is Power | Sunday, 18 October 2026
Stafford, Texas — Houston 80-20, the Asian American Political Action Committee, hosted its Endorsed Candidates Recognition Dinner, titled “Come Meet our Endorsed Candidates”, on Sunday, 18 October 2026, from 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm at Karahi Point Restaurant, 12000 Southwest Freeway, Stafford, Texas 77477. The event was moderated by Rogene Calvert, a veteran Houston political figure, and brought elected officials and candidates together with members of the Asian American and immigrant communities ahead of the general election on 3 November 2026.
Houston 80-20 PAC endorsed 18 candidates for the November 2026 General Elections, ranging from U.S. Congressional Districts 7, 18 and 22 to Harris County and Fort Bend County judicial and education offices. The full list is given at the end of this report.
Left to right: Darlene Breaux, Texas State Representative, District 149; Lesley Briones, Harris County Commissioner, Precinct 4; AJ Durrani, Houston 80-20; and Rafi Aziz at the Karahi Point event in Stafford, Texas. |
Houston 80-20 Leadership and Event Moderator
Abdul Faruki, President of Houston 80-20 Asian American Political Action Committee, was among the PAC representatives present, together with AJ Durrani. Rogene Calvert moderated the event and introduced the guest speakers to the attendees.
Abdul Faruki, President, Houston 80-20 Asian American Political Action Committee. |
AJ Durrani, Houston 80-20, addressing attendees. |
Rogene Calvert, a veteran Houston political figure and moderator of the event, introducing Harris County Precinct 4 Commissioner Lesley Briones to attendees. |
Rogene Calvert passing the microphone to the next speaker at the Houston 80-20 PAC event. |
Rogene Calvert, moderator of the event. |
Rogene Calvert, veteran Houston political figure, moderating the event. |
Commissioner Lesley Briones Urges Early Voting
Harris County Precinct 4 Commissioner Lesley Briones spoke about her role as commissioner and thanked Houston 80-20 PAC. Commissioner Briones is seeking re-election on 3 November and urged residents to begin voting early, with early voting running from 19 October to 30 October. She encouraged all registered voters to vote as soon as possible and reminded them that anyone who misses early voting must vote on Election Day, 3 November 2026.
Harris County Commissioner Lesley Briones (Precinct 4) holds the Pakistan Chronicle, which carried coverage of the Houston Community Media Expo and Awards ceremony. |
Commissioner Lesley Briones thanking Houston 80-20 PAC for its support. |
Gene Wu Calls on Communities to Vote and Stay Engaged
Texas State Representative Gene Wu, District 137, addressed the attendees and urged the Asian American and immigrant communities to pay attention to the importance of voting in deciding their future, and to remain engaged with elected officials after the election.
Texas State Representative Gene Wu, District 137, addressing attendees at the Houston 80-20 PAC event at Karahi Point, Stafford, Texas. |
Texas State Representative Gene Wu, District 137. |
Lizzie Fletcher Thanks Houston 80-20 PAC for Endorsement
U.S. Representative Lizzie Fletcher, Texas Congressional District 7, addressed the gathering and thanked Houston 80-20 PAC for its endorsement.
Tariq Khan with Lizzie Fletcher, U.S. Representative, Texas Congressional District 7. |
Lizzie Fletcher, U.S. Representative, Texas Congressional District 7, addressing attendees and thanking Houston 80-20 PAC for its endorsement. |
Guests, including U.S. Representative Lizzie Fletcher, at the meal during the event. |
|
Elected Officials and Candidates Attend
Other endorsed candidates and elected officials present included Texas State Representatives Darlene Breaux (District 149), Ron Reynolds (District 27) and Dr Suleman Lalani (District 76); Fort Bend County Judge Dexter McCoy; Manpreet Singh, Harris County Civil Court at Law No. 4; Juli Mathew, Fort Bend County Court at Law No. 3; and a representative of Letitia Plummer, candidate for Harris County Judge. Rafi Aziz was also among those at the event.
Darlene Breaux, Texas State Representative, District 149. |
Ron Reynolds, Texas State Representative, District 27. |
Dexter McCoy, Fort Bend County Judge. |
Manpreet Singh, Harris County Civil Court at Law No. 4. |
Dexter McCoy and Manpreet Singh at the Houston 80-20 event at Karahi Point. |
Juli Mathew, Fort Bend County Court at Law No. 3. |
|
A speaker addressing attendees at the Houston 80-20 PAC event. |
|
Karahi Point Hosts the Dinner
The event was hosted at Karahi Point, where Siraj Anwar is the manager. Owner Adil Iqbal said he operates 14 restaurants in Canada and that Karahi Point is his first in the Greater Houston area.
Left to right: Siraj Anwar, Manager, Karahi Point; Lizzie Fletcher, U.S. Representative, Texas Congressional District 7; and Adil Iqbal, owner of Karahi Point. |
Houston 80-20 Urges Everyone to Vote
Houston 80-20 is a non-partisan, local political action committee registered with the Texas Ethics Commission. It urged everyone to vote during early voting, from 19 October to 30 October, or on Election Day, 3 November, and encouraged the Asian American community to support its endorsed candidates through community outreach to registered Asian American voter households.
Houston 80-20 Endorsed Candidates, November 2026 General Elections
| Office | Endorsed candidate |
| U.S. Congressional District 7 | Hon. Lizzie Fletcher |
| U.S. Congressional District 18 | Hon. Christian Menefee |
| U.S. Congressional District 22 | Hon. Marquette Greene-Scott |
| Harris County Judge | Hon. Letitia Plummer |
| Fort Bend County Judge | Hon. Dexter McCoy |
| State Representative District 27 | Hon. Ron Reynolds |
| State Representative District 28 | Hon. Gary Gates |
| State Representative District 76 | Hon. Suleman Lalani |
| State Representative District 137 | Hon. Gene Wu |
| State Representative District 149 | Hon. Darlene Breaux |
| Harris County Commissioner, Precinct 4 | Hon. Lesley Briones |
| Harris County Judge, District Court No. 113 | Hon. Rabeea Collier |
| Harris County Judge, District Court No. 281 | Hon. Christine Weems |
| Harris County Civil Court at Law No. 4 | Hon. Manpreet Singh |
| Fort Bend County Judge, Court at Law No. 3 | Hon. Juli Mathew |
| Fort Bend County 240th District Court | Hon. Surendran Pattel |
| Fort Bend County Justice of the Peace, Precinct 3 | Hon. Sonia Rash |
| Harris County Department of Education, Position 7 | Hon. Silky Joshi-Malik |
