The 2026 Texas House of Representatives election will be held on November 3, 2026, alongside elections for the state senate. The winners of this election will serve in the 90th legislative session. All 150 seats in the Texas House of Representatives are up for election.
Quick facts All 150 seats in the Texas House of Representatives 76 seats needed for a majority, Leader ...
Primary elections were held on March 3, 2026, with runoff primaries scheduled for May 26, 2026 in districts where no primary candidate secured a majority of the vote.[1]
Background
Republicans have controlled the House of Representatives since the 2002 election. The 2024 election marked a considerable shift towards the right among the membership of the House of Representatives. Fifteen Republicans lost their primary elections, with the majority of their challengers backed by governor Greg Abbott over the issue of school vouchers. Republicans flipped two seats in the heavily-HispanicRio Grande Valley in the general election, increasing their majority to 88 out of 150 seats, with the Democrats holding the other 62.[2]
2025 regular session
During the regular session, the legislature passed a number of bills to advance a conservative agenda. The session began, however, with the election of Dustin Burrows as Speaker of the House with the support of most Democrats and some Republicans, over more insurgent Republican David Cook.[3]
Long a priority of the most conservative Republicans in the legislature, especially in the Senate, that had historically faced major hurdles in the more moderate House, the passage of school voucher legislation marked the most significant sign of the conservative shift of the chamber in recent years. In 2021, only 29 Republicans had voted in favor of vouchers. Greg Abbott began pushing the issue more strongly in 2022, gaining support from many incumbent Republicans and funding the primary challengers of those who still opposed it.[4] By the time the measure came up for a vote in the 2025 regular session, only two Republicans, Gary VanDeaver and former Speaker Dade Phelan, voted against it, alongside all present Democrats.[5] The bill allocates $1 billion of public funds for children to attend private schools or for their parents to homeschool them, prioritized based on income and disability.[6] President Donald Trump, lent his support to the effort and endorsed all Republican legislators who voted in favor of the bill should they seek reelection.[7][8]
Tort reform legislation backed by the influential Texans for Lawsuit Reform (TLR), failed due to opposition from the hardline wing of the Republican caucus.[13]
Greg Abbott had already planned to call a special session to address legislation that did not pass in time during the regular session or that Abbott vetoed, such as a ban on THC products, as well as to address new issues such as deadly flooding in central Texas. At the request of President Donald Trump, Abbott added congressional redistricting to the agenda with the goal of flipping five Democratic-held U.S. House seats to the Republicans in the 2026 elections.[14] In response, most House Democrats left the state on August 3 in order to prevent the establishment of a quorum in the chamber, blocking all legislative activity.[15] The walkout lasted for the entire remaining duration of the first special session, after which Abbott immediately called a second one. Democrats returned to the chamber for the second session.[16] The legislature passed new congressional maps shortly afterwards, and they later passed additional legislation to punish lawmakers who break quorum in the future.[17][18]
District partisanship
2024 Presidential data by House district:
Trump
40–50%
50–60%
60–70%
70–80%
80–90%
Harris
40–50%
50–60%
60–70%
70–80%
In the 2024 presidential election, Republican Donald Trump won 96 districts, while Democrat Kamala Harris won 54 districts. Democrats now hold 8 districts in which Trump won, while Republicans hold no districts won by Harris. Republicans made massive gains across the historically-Democratic Rio Grande Valley region in 2024.[19] Most of the Democratic-held districts won by Trump come from this region. Republicans have fielded candidates in 6 of these districts.
More information District, Trump margin of victory in 2024 ...
Ahead of the March primary election, Democrats announced that they had recruited candidates to run in every state and federal race on the ballot, including all 150 House of Representatives districts, a first for either political party in the state's modern history. Governor Greg Abbott pushed to recruit candidates to run in every district in Harris County as well, as part of an attempt to flip the county in his concurrent gubernatorial campaign.[45] With bolstered recruiting in several Trump-won districts in the heavily-HispanicRio Grande Valley as well, Republicans are contesting 133 of the state's 150 districts, the most in their party's modern history as well.
Statewide primary election
In contrast to the 2024 primary, which saw millions of dollars poured into dozens of Republican primary races to oust opponents of school vouchers, the 2026 primary has seen a much smaller field dominated by different political forces. Unlike the right-wing donors who fueled the school voucher push, such as Tim Dunn and Farris Wilks, more primary challengers this cycle have the backing of Texans for Lawsuit Reform, a group which was instrumental in the Republican takeover of the state government in the 1990s and 2000s. Seen as a more establishment conservative organization, TLR's influence in the legislature has waned in recent years as the party has become more dominated by hardline conservatives. They are targeting lawmakers who led the defeat of prominent tort reform bills in the previous legislative session.[46]
Very few incumbent legislators lost renomination compared to 2024, despite the substantial financial backing many challengers received. Two Republican challengers backed by billionaire Tim Dunn won, but no challengers backed by TLR or pro-casino groups defeated any incumbents. Former Democratic leader Chris Turner lost renomination in a major upset, while two other Democratic incumbents were forced into runoffs.[44]
General election
For the first time in several election cycles, the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee is putting significant funding into Texas House races in anticipation of a possible nationwide wave election. They have targeted five Republican-held seats, focused in the Rio Grande Valley and the state's suburban areas, which Democrats have either lost or narrowed Republican margins in recent years.[47]
Incumbent Republican Gary VanDeaver is retiring.[21] On October 11, 2025, the Texas GOP issued a censure against VanDeaver, but stopped short of implementing newly adopted rules that would have barred VanDeaver from running in the Republican primary.[53] Chris Spencer, who ran against VanDeaver in 2024, defeated Josh Bray in the Republican primary by a very narrow margin.[54]
Incumbent Republican Jay Dean is running for re-election.[57] Dean has accused his opponent, Melissa Beckett, of wanting to eliminate the state's pension program for teachers, which Beckett has denied, filing a defamation lawsuit against Dean for the accusation.[58]
Incumbent Republican Cody Harris is running for re-election.[59] He defeated Daniel Hunt in the Republican Primary, with the two candidates sparring over water conservation and welling policy.[60] Harris had sought during the previous legislative session to block the construction of new wells in East Texas.[61] Harris will face Democrat Jeff Chavez in the general election.
Incumbent Republican Trent Ashby is retiring to run for Texas Senate, to replace retiring Senator Robert Nichols.[22] Three candidates ran in the Republican primary to replace him, all running on platforms emphasizing the protection of water rights in East Texas. Ashby did not endorse any potential successor.[62][63] Retired DPS Trooper Rocky Thigpen won the primary and will face Democrat Shelly Tatum in the general election.
Incumbent Republican Brian Harrison is running for re-election.[64] Harrison defeated two opponents in the primary Matt Authier and Jon Gattett. He will face Democrat Michael Myers in the general election.
Incumbent Republican Angelia Orr is running for re-election.[66] On October 11, 2025, the Texas GOP issued a censure against Orr, but stopped short of implementing newly adopted rules that would have barred Orr from running in the Republican primary.[53] Despite this, Orr has received endorsements from several state and national Republicans, including Greg Abbott, Donald Trump, and Ted Cruz. Challenger Kat Wall, campaigning on more locally-focused issues, was endorsed by five of the seven Republican county chairs in the district and received financial backing from billionaire Tim Dunn, but lost to Orr in the primary.[44][67] Orr will face Democrat Albert Hunter in the general election.
Incumbent Republican Will Metcalf is running for re-election.[55] Metcalf was reprimanded by the Montgomery County Republican Party over his support of Dustin Burrows over David Cook for Speaker of the House during the previous legislative session.[56] Metcalf won the Republican primary despite the reprimand and will face Democrat Bobby Clayton in the general election.
Incumbent Republican Stan Gerdes is running for re-election.[55] In the Republican primary he defeated Tom Glass, who challenged him in the 2024 primary.[70][71] Gerdes will face Democrat Mary Elizabeth Klenz in the general election.
Incumbent Republican Ellen Troxclair is running for re-election. Democrat Kelly Hall dropped out of the race in January to run for mayor of Round Rock, after the deadline to have his name removed from the ballot. Despite raising no money, spending no time campaigning and openly endorsing his opponent, Hall won the primary by a wide margin. Hall is attempting to withdraw from the race and allow the party to replace him with his opponent, Javi Andrade, but state election law makes that process difficult.[73]
Incumbent Republican former Speaker of the HouseDade Phelan is retiring.[26] On October 11, 2025, the Texas GOP issued a censure against Phelan, but stopped short of implementing newly adopted rules that would have barred Phelan from running in the Republican primary.[53]
Incumbent Republican Terri Leo-Wilson is running for re-election. Her challenger in the Republican primary, Nathan Watkins, raised more than double Leo-Wilson's campaign funding, primarily from high-dollar donations from industries such as construction.[75] Leo-Wilson accused Watkins of having a conflict of interest regarding his company's relationship with Barbers Hill ISD and plans to construct a luxury apartment complex. Watkins filed a defamation lawsuit against Leo-Wilson for her comments, which she filed a SLAPP motion to dismiss.[76][77] Leo-Wilson won the primary and will face Democrat Cheryl Lynn Clark in the general election.
Incumbent Republican Denise Villalobos is running for re-election. Villalobos flipped District 34, which is based in Corpus Christi, in 2024. It is one of five Republican-held seats Democrats are most heavily targeting in the general election.[47]
Incumbent Republican Janie Lopez is running for re-election. Lopez flipped District 37, which is located in the Rio Grande Valley, in 2022, and is one of five Republican-held seats Democrats are most heavily targeting in the general election.[47]
Incumbent Democrat Robert Guerra is retiring.[37]Donald Trump won the McAllen-based district in the 2024 election, making the seat a top target for Republicans in the general election. Candidates in both hotly-contested primaries have been accused of affiliation with the opposing party based on past primary voting records, with conflict on the Republican side focusing on the state's abortion laws and gun rights.[82] The contested nature of the primaries resulted in both races proceeding to runoff elections.
Incumbent Democrat Gina Hinojosa is retiring to run for Governor.[39] A very crowded Democratic primary emerged to replace her in the liberal, Austin-based district. Among the candidates is Kathie Tovo, a former member of the Austin City Council.[84][85] Montserrat Garibay, a former U.S. Department of Education official, has received the endorsement of several prominent Democrats, including U.S. Representative Greg Casar, state representative John Bucy, and former state senator Wendy Davis.[84] All of the Democratic candidates expressed similar policy positions, differentiating themselves on experience and focus.[83] With none of the candidates receiving a majority of the vote, Garibay and Tovo proceeded to a runoff election.
Incumbent Democrat James Talarico is retiring to run for US Senate.[40] A crowded primary emerged to replace him including Jeremy Hendricks, a labor organizer, who received the endorsement of several Austin-area Democrats, including U.S. Representative Lloyd Doggett, state senator Sarah Eckhardt, and mayor Kirk Watson.[87] Other candidates include Samantha Lopez-Resendez, a staffer for state representative Donna Howard and former public school librarian who is running with an emphasis on public education, and Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch, an immigration attorney.[83] Resendez won the primary and will face Republican Howard Olsen in the general election.
Incumbent Republican Caroline Harris Davila is running for re-election. Her challenger in the Republican primary, Blayre Peña focused her campaign on property tax legislation Harris Davila voted on during the previous legislation, criticizing it as shifting the tax burden from large businesses to small businesses and homeowners, receiving the endorsement of the Austin American-Statesman as a result.[88] Harris Davilla won the primary and will face Democrat Chris Jimenez in the general election.
In the Democratic Primary, candidate Brittany Black had previously filed to run for Texas's 3rd congressional district as a Republican before switching to this race as a Democrat, calling the former filing a "mistake." Black defeated Jackie Bescherer, who was seen as the more moderate of the two. Richardson won nearly 60% of the vote in 2024, but Democrats see the district as possibly competitive due to backlash against the closures of several local schools, which they blame on Republicans, and the continued population growth of northern Collin County.[90] Anissa Chilmeran is running for the seat under the Green Party.[92]
Incumbent Republican Ben Bumgarner is running for re-election.[93] Denise Wooten, a perennial Democrat candidate, is also running. Neither Bumgarner nor Wooten are opposed in their respective primaries.
Incumbent Republican Andy Hopper is running for re-election.[94] Texans for Lawsuit Reform backed a primary challenger, Lisa McEntire, over Hopper's role in watering down and eventually killing a major tort reform bill.[46] Hopper won the primary and will face Democrat Julie Evans in the general election.
Incumbent Republican Stan Lambert is retiring.[27] On October 11, 2025, the Texas GOP issued a censure against Lambert, but stopped short of implementing newly adopted rules that would have barred Lambert from running in the Republican primary.[53]
Incumbent Democrat Eddie Morales is running for re-election.[96] The Republican primary was a repeat of the 2024 primary with the candidates, Robert Garza, former Mayor of Del Rio and John McLeon, a member of the Texas Army National Guard. Garza won the Republican nomination for a second time and will face Morales in the general election.[97]
Incumbent Republican Stan Kitzman ran for re-election, but he was defeated in the Republican primary by Dennis Geesaman, the former mayor of Flatonia, who was backed by billionaire Tim Dunn.[44][101] Geesaman will face Democrat Lawrence Brandyburg in the general election.
Incumbent Republican Ken King is running for re-election. King defeated challenger John Browning in the Republican primary, who had been backed by billionaire Tim Dunn as the more hardline conservative candidate.[44]
Incumbent Republican Giovanni Capriglione, who had led a Texas House committee based on the Department of Government Efficiency, initially planned to run for re-election but announced his retirement on July 23, 2025. Armin Mizani, the mayor of Keller who had run for this seat in 2018, switched to this race from a special election for Senate District 9, which he had previously been running for.[32] Zee Wilcox, another Republican candidate had been removed from the ballot over issues with her filing paperwork, but she successfully sued to remain on the ballot.[103][104] Tort reform has become a major issue in the race, with Texans for Lawsuit Reform backing Fred Tate, with more conservative legal groups backing Mizani.[46] Mizani won the primary and will face democrat Cate Brennan in the general election.
Incumbent Democrat Chris Turner, the former leader of the House Democratic caucus, ran for re-election, but he unexpectedly lost the Democratic primary to Grand Prairie mayor pro tem Junior Enzeonu. Younger and more progressive than Turner, Enzeonu won despite a significant financial disadvantage in what observers called a "generational shift" in the Tarrant County district.[105] While Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Jasmine Crockett did not endorse either candidate in the race, Enzeonu closely tied his campaign to hers. Crockett won three quarters of the vote in District 101 in her highly-contested primary against state representative James Talarico, with this surge of turnout contributing to Ezeonu's victory.[106]
Incumbent Republican Jared Patterson is running for re-election. On October 11, 2025, the Texas GOP issued a censure against Patterson, but stopped short of implementing newly adopted rules that would have barred Patterson from running in the Republican primary.[53] Despite the censure, Patterson won the primary and will face Democrat Joe Mayes in the general election.
Incumbent Republican Angie Chen Button is running for re-election.[107] District 112, based in the Far North Dallas suburbs of Richardson and Garland, has become increasingly competitive in recent cycles, although Button has continued to win re-election despite this. It is one of five Republican-held seats Democrats are most heavily targeting in the general election.[47] Button won her primary against multiple challengers and will face Democrat Zach Herbert in the general election.
Incumbent Democrat Philip Cortez is running for re-election. Cortez, a moderate Democrat who did not participate in either of the two recent quorum breaks over the 2025 redistricting nor the 2021 voting legislation, drew a progressive primary challenger, Robert Miahara.[109] Cortez won the primary and will face Republican Ben Mostyn in the general election.
Incumbent Republican John Lujan is retiring to run for Texas's 35th congressional district.[33] Lujan had initially won the district in a 2021 special election following the resignation of Democrat Leo Pacheco. Pacheco switched parties in 2025 to run for this seat as a Republican,[110] but he later dropped out. Another Democratic candidate from that race, Desi Martinez, who had also switched parties, remained in the race.[111] Martinez was backed by local Republicans, including Lujan, but she lost the nomination to Jorge Borrego, who played a role in developing the private school voucher legislation that passed through the legislature.[112][113] District 118, based in southern Bexar County, is one of five Republican-held seats Democrats are most heavily targeting in the general election due to its narrow Republican lean.[47] Borrego will face Democrat Kristain Carranza in the general election.
Incumbent Republican Marc LaHood is running for re-election.[80] LaHood, who won his seat by ousting moderate Republican Steve Allison in 2024 over Allison's opposition to school vouchers, drew his own primary challenger backed by the influential group Texans for Lawsuit Reform. Challenger David McArthur, who worked in the George W. Bush administration, was considered the more moderate, business-centric Republican of the two.[111] LaHood won the race by a wide margin. District 121, based in the northern suburbs of San Antonio, is one of five Republican-held seats Democrats are most heavily targeting in the general election due to its narrow Republican lean.[47] LaHood will face Democrat Zach Dunn in the general election.
Incumbent Republican Mark Dorazio is running for re-election. He defeated Texans for Lawsuit Reform backed challenger Willie Ng.[46] Dorazio will face Democrat Shelly Nickels in the general election.
Incumbent Democrat Ray Lopez is retiring. Lopez had endorsed his chief of staff, Donovon Rodriguez to replace him in the crowded Democratic primary.[41] None of the candidates received a majority and the race proceeded to a runoff between former Bexar County constable Michelle Barrientes Vela and Adrian Reyna, a San Antonio teacher's union vice president.[115][116] Carlos Antonio Raymond, who has switched parties multiple times, also ran.[111]
The winner of the runoff will face Republican Ricardo Martinez in the general election.
Incumbent Democrat Alma Allen is retiring and endorsed her son, Lawrence Allen Jr., in the crowded primary to succeed her.[42] None of the candidates received a majority, with Allen Jr. coming in second place behind State Board of Education member Staci Childs. The winner of the runoff between Allen Jr. and Childs will face Republican Scott Whitmarsh in the general.
Incumbent Democrat Harold Dutton Jr. is running for re-election. One of the longest-serving and most conservative Democrats in the House, having been first elected in 1984, Dutton drew multiple primary challengers.[117] Dutton drew additional controversy during the campaign, telling a local union "to hell with you all" after they endorsed one of his opponents, Danny Norris.[118] Pre-election polling indicated Dutton likely would not receive a majority of the vote, facing a runoff with Norris.[117] Despite this, Dutton won nearly 51% of the vote, narrowly avoiding a runoff to win the nomination outright.[44]
Incumbent Democrat Hubert Vo is running for re-election. Vo faced multiple challengers and was forced into a runoff by Alief ISD Board President Darlene Breaux.[44] The winner of the runoff will face Republican Dave Bennett in the general election.
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