Conversation so far:
What year did this begin?
Houston was twice elected President of the Republic of Texas.
In the 1836 election.
Who helped him?
To help save his political reputation, Houston sent James Pinckney Henderson to Washington to help Isaac Van Zandt advocate the annexation of Texas.
Who was James Pinckney Henderson?
Houston sent James Pinckney Henderson to Washington to help Isaac Van Zandt advocate the annexation of Texas.
Anything else interesting?
He also struggled to avoid war with Mexico, whose forces invaded twice during 1842.

Question: What did he do to avoid war?
Self-contained rewrite: What did Sam Houston do to avoid war with Mexico ?