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Harris County to cancel $11 million COVID-19 contract after facing heavy scrutiny
Harris County's leader, Judge Lina Hidalgo says the county is going to cancel an $11 million contract after questions were raised about whether the judge was playing favorites to a certain firm with no experience to speak of.
HARRIS COUNTY, Texas - Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo will call for the cancellation of a controversial $11 million COVID-19 outreach contract claiming the issue has become overly politicized.
FOX 26 was the first to investigate the contract with Elevate Strategies LLC. - a one-woman firm with a short track record and few resources who was awarded the deal after having traditional financial standards waived by the County.
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Critics said the contract began failing the "smell test" after FOX 26 revealed that Elevate actually finished second in the head-to-head competition behind The University of Texas Health Science Center only to have that winning proposal tossed out by a committee dominated by Hidalgo insiders who favored Elevate, including current Chief of Staff Alex Triantaphyllis.
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Challenging conversation at commissioners court
Challenging conversation at commissioners court riles the panel about proper meeting decorum.
As for the issue becoming "politicized," a FOX 26 review of public documents revealed at least 12 Elevate subcontractors were past political operatives for Democratic campaigns or organizations including those for Joe Biden, Barack Obama, and Hillary Clinton.
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Three firms listed as subcontractors advertise their affiliation with the Democratic party.
The revelations led Rice political analyst Mark Jones and Houston Columnist Bill King to label the contract a "political pass through" of lucrative health communication business to Hidalgo's Democratic allies.
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"This has never been about the health of Harris County residents. It's about the political operations of Lina Hidalgo and her supporters in 2022," said Jones.
"These additional revelations are stunning in just how blatant and shameless this bid rigging was," wrote King.
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FOX 26 has requested a comment from Judge Hidalgo and will report it once received.