Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo remains homebound with abdominal ailment

Lucio Vasquez / Houston Public Media

Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo is being treated for abdominal pain and has spent the week at home trying to recover, a spokesperson for her office said Friday.

Hidalgo, 31, wrote on Twitter earlier this week that she visited an emergency room Monday with symptoms of fever, pain and dehydration. She provided an update with another post Thursday, saying she had “severe food poisoning” and that her doctors “also discovered what they expect is a benign ovarian cyst that’ll likely require surgery later this year.”

Angelica Luna-Kaufman, a spokesperson for Hidalgo’s office, said Friday the county judge is “still under the weather” and trying to work from home.

“She runs a county, right, so there are certain things we have to ask her about and talk to her about,” Luna-Kaufman said. “But she is sick and recovering.”

I can’t thank you all enough for the well wishes! Update: I’m still recovering from severe food poisoning/dehydration. Doctors also discovered what they expect is a benign ovarian cyst that’ll likely require surgery later this year. Look forward to being back at full speed soon!

— Lina Hidalgo (@LinaHidalgoTX) October 6, 2022

Hidalgo, a Democrat, became the first woman and first Latina elected as Harris County judge, the chief executive position in the county government, in 2018. She is up for reelection in November and facing Republican Alexandra del Moral Mealer.

Last weekend, in the days leading up to her emergency room visit, Hidalgo did some campaigning, practiced for a triathlon, met with local union workers sending supplies to Hurricane Ian victims and attended a brunch hosted by the Houston LGBTQ+ Political Caucus, according to her Twitter posts.

Hidalgo cut her work day short Monday to go to the ER and has since been taking antibiotics to treat her abdominal ailment, according to Luna-Kaufman, who said Hidalgo’s doctors estimated it would take about a week for her to recover.

“I can’t thank you all enough for the well wishes,” Hidalgo wrote Thursday on Twitter. “… Look forward to being back at full speed soon.”