Houston Endowment
At 27, County Judge Lina Hidalgo made history as the youngest and first Latina to lead Harris County, home to 4.7 million residents. HR&A supported her groundbreaking transition by building her leadership team, establishing policy frameworks, and executing Talking Transition—one of the largest community engagement efforts in county history that gathered input from 11,000+ survey participants and 1,600+ event attendees across 200+ organizations.
Judge Hidalgo’s victory over a 12-year incumbent created both extraordinary opportunity and significant transition challenges for the new administration. Drawing on experience in innovative governance transitions, HR&A developed a comprehensive approach addressing immediate operational needs while establishing long-term policy direction. We assisted with setting up, hiring, and onboarding senior staff positions, ensuring the administration had necessary leadership from the start. We identified policy priorities and designed workflow for the Judge’s policy cabinet, creating the strategic framework that informed her first 100 days. Central to our approach was leading Talking Transition, recognizing that “for too long, County government has been something that people don’t see, that they don’t engage with, that they don’t understand.” We deployed a countywide survey and seven public events throughout the region, followed by Action Plan Workshops bringing together residents, subject matter experts, policymakers, and community leaders to strengthen civic infrastructure.
The initiative catalyzed a growing network of relationships between County government and hundreds of experts, activists, and community leaders throughout the region. By incorporating public participation into the executive transition, Talking Transition allowed the incoming administration to tailor policy initiatives based on public needs while establishing sustainable partnerships. This comprehensive transition support positioned Judge Hidalgo to lead effectively from day one while maintaining grassroots connections, demonstrating how inclusive processes combined with strategic operational planning can strengthen democratic governance and community trust.
