What you need to know:

• Houston City Council Member Carter Cole was reelected mayor in a 5-2 council vote Monday. David Childs was unanimously elected deputy mayor.
• Childs declined a nomination for mayor because he would be unable to devote the attention the job requires, he said.
• In Houston, a second-class city, the council elects the mayor from among its members each year, as required by state law.

HOUSTON – Houston City Council member Carter Cole will serve a third term as the city's mayor following a council vote Monday.

Cole was elected mayor in a 5-2 vote, with council members Lisa Johansen and Sandy McDonald opposed. He was reelected to the council in the city's October election, defeating challenger Wayne Oliver 154-116.

In Houston, a second-class city, the council elects the mayor from among its members each year as required by state law. Cole was first elected mayor in 2022.

Council member David Childs, who previously served as deputy mayor, was also nominated for the mayor's seat. He declined the nomination because his full-time job as a middle school teacher would not allow him to devote the necessary time and attention to the role, he said.

Childs instead accepted a nomination for deputy mayor and was elected unanimously.

Cole and Childs were sworn in at Monday's meeting.

— Contact Amy Bushatz at abushatz@matsusentinel.com.