2026 Harris County Judge election
Texas local election
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The 2026 Harris County Judge election will be held on November 3, 2026, to elect the county judge of Harris County, Texas. Primary elections were held on March 3, and a primary runoff election will be held on May 26. Incumbent Democratic judge Lina Hidalgo is not running for re-election.[1]
| ||||||||||
November 3, 2026
| ||||||||||
| ||||||||||
| ||||||||||
.jpg)
.png)
Democratic primary
Candidates
Nominee
- Letitia Plummer, former Houston city councilor for the at-large district (2020–2025), candidate for Texas's 22nd congressional district in 2018, and candidate for Texas's 18th congressional district in 2024[2]
Eliminated in runoff
- Annise Parker, former mayor of Houston (2010–2016)[3]
Eliminated in primary
- Matthew Salazar, business owner[4]
Withdrawn
- Erica Lee Carter, former U.S. representative from Texas's 18th congressional district (2024–2025)[5]
Declined
- Lina Hidalgo, incumbent judge[6]
Endorsements
Annise Parker
- Local officials
- Adrian Garcia, Harris County commissioner from the 2nd precinct (2019–present)[7]
- Labor unions
- UNITE HERE Local 23[8]
- Organizations
- Newspapers
Polling
| Poll source | Date(s) administered |
Sample size[a] |
Margin of error |
Annise Parker |
Letitia Plummer |
Erica Lee Carter |
Matt Salazar |
Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| University of Houston[11] | February 3–10, 2026 | 2,000 (LV) | ± 2.19% | 46% | 25% | – | 5% | 24% |
| Carter withdraws from the race | ||||||||
| Lake Research Partners (D)[12] | July 31 – August 7, 2025 | 500 (LV) | ± 4.4% | 53% | 15% | 9% | – | 20% |
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Annise Parker | 156,321 | 46.65 | |
| Democratic | Letitia Plummer | 124,936 | 37.28 | |
| Democratic | Matthew Salazar | 53,866 | 16.07 | |
| Total votes | 335,123 | 100.00 | ||
Runoff
Polling
| Poll source | Date(s) administered |
Sample size[a] |
Margin of error |
Annise Parker |
Letitia Plummer |
Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| University of Houston[14] | May 5–9, 2026 | 1,200 (LV) | ± 2.83% | 54% | 36% | 10% |
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Letitia Plummer | 57,893 | 51.10 | |
| Democratic | Annise Parker | 55,395 | 48.90 | |
| Total votes | 113,288 | 100.00 | ||
Republican primary
Candidates
Nominee
- Orlando Sanchez, former county treasurer (2007–2018) and candidate for mayor of Houston in 2001 and 2003[16]
Eliminated in runoff
- Warren Howell, insurance businessman and candidate in 2022[17]
Eliminated in primary
- Aliza Dutt, mayor of Piney Point Village (2024–present)[18]
- Oscar Gonzales, former sheriff's deputy and candidate in 2022[19]
- Marty Lancton, Houston Professional Fire Fighters Association president[20]
- George Zoes, business owner and candidate in 2022[4]
Endorsements
Marty Lancton
- Statewide officials
- Greg Abbott, governor of Texas (2015–present)[21]
- Dawn Buckingham, land commissioner of Texas (2023–present)[22]
- Individuals
- Jim McIngvale, businessman[22]
Orlando Sanchez
- Newspapers
Polling
| Poll source | Date(s) administered |
Sample size[a] |
Margin of error |
Aliza Dutt |
Oscar Gonzalez |
Warren Howell |
Marty Lancton |
Orlando Sanchez |
George Zoes |
Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| University of Houston[11] | February 3–10, 2026 | 2,000 (LV) | ± 2.19% | 7% | 3% | 4% | 10% | 21% | 1% | 54% |
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Orlando Sanchez | 47,568 | 26.46 | |
| Republican | Warren Howell | 37,376 | 20.79 | |
| Republican | Marty Lancton | 36,959 | 20.56 | |
| Republican | Aliza Dutt | 33,523 | 18.65 | |
| Republican | Oscar Gonzales | 13,407 | 7.46 | |
| Republican | George Zoes | 10,913 | 6.07 | |
| Total votes | 179,746 | 100.00 | ||
Runoff
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Orlando Sanchez | 85,304 | 63.34 | |
| Republican | Warren Howell | 49,367 | 36.66 | |
| Total votes | 134,671 | 100.00 | ||
General election
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Letitia Plummer | |||
| Republican | Orlando Sanchez | |||
| Total votes | 100.00 | |||
Notes
- Key:
A – all adults
RV – registered voters
LV – likely voters
V – unclear