Texas Primary Election Results Update

On March 5th, we saw record turnout from both parties (exceeding 2022 records, with Democrats showing dramatic growth); a lot of money spent; runoffs in major races; incumbent defeats; and implications for the November General Election and 2027 legislative session.

The Runoff Election is set for May 26, 2026.  Click here for a chart of the full results.

Turnout

Voter turnout in the 2026 Texas Primary Election far exceeded expectations for a midterm cycle, with early voting setting a new statewide record. More than 2.59 million Texans voted before Election Day, surpassing the previous early-voting record of roughly 2 million votes during the 2020 presidential primary.

Both parties experienced increased participation, though Democratic turnout saw the most dramatic growth. Nearly 1.4 million votes were cast in the Democratic primary during early voting, representing a 123% increase compared to 2022 early voting, while Republican early turnout rose by roughly 17% over the same period.

Statewide, Democratic voters cast 193,785 more early ballots than Republicans, a notable shift that continued through Election Day. For example, the statewide top-ticket race (for U.S. Senator) had 2.22 million voters in the Democratic primary compared to 2.07 million voters in the Republican primary (as of 10:00 a.m. on March 4).

This year’s surge was particularly visible in large population centers. Harris County’s combined early vote was up roughly 66% compared to the 2022 primary, with Democratic participation more than doubling. And in Bexar County, overall early turnout increased about 50%, again driven largely by Democratic voters, whose early participation nearly doubled relative to the last midterm cycle.

These increases were also mirrored in other fast-growing metro areas, indicating that turnout gains were not confined to a single region. Overall, these early voting patterns further underscore the growing importance of front-loaded campaign operations and voter mobilization well before Election Day.

Statewide Races

Several high-profile contests resulted in runoffs or upsets:

• Governor (R): Greg Abbott won outright with 81.9% and will face Democrat Gina Hinojosa (59.3%) in November.
• Lt. Governor (R): Dan Patrick won with 84.8%; Democrats Vikki Goodwin (48.1%) and Marcos Isaias Velez (31.6%) head to a runoff.
• U.S. Senate (R): Incumbent John Cornyn (41.9%) will face Ken Paxton (40.9%) in the runoff; Democrat James Talarico won outright (52.8%) over Jasmine Crockett (45.9%).
• Attorney General (R): Mayes Middleton (39.2%) will face Chip Roy (31.7%) in the runoff; Trump may endorse in runoff. Democrats Nathan Johnson (47.8%) and Joe Jaworski (26.7%) head to a runoff.
• Comptroller (R): Don Huffines won outright with 57.4% (defeating acting incumbent Kelly Hancock (23.6%)) and will face Democrat Sarah Eckhardt (64.4%) in November.
• Agriculture Commissioner (R): Nate Sheets (52.6%) ousted incumbent Sid Miller (47.5%), with Gov. Abbott’s endorsement likely key to this outcome.
• Railroad Commissioner (R): Incumbent Jim Wright (32%) will face Bo French (31.7%) in a runoff.

Texas House

In the primary, 39 incumbents faced challengers: 

• 3 were defeated (Reps. Cecil Bell (R-HD3); Stan Kitzman (R-HD85); and Chris Turner (D-HD101)); and
• 1 is in a runoff (Rep. Hubert Vo (D-HD149)).

Four open House seats (i.e., no incumbent on the ballot) head to the Republican primary runoff, with the most watched being Stan Stanart (49.2%) and Kelly Peterson (28.8%) vying for Rep. Sam Harless’s seat in Spring, Texas. And seven House seats head to the Democratic primary runoff, including one incumbent: Rep. Hubert Vo out of Houston. 

With 21 retirements and three primary defeats, the Texas House will have at least 24 new members in 2027.

Texas Senate

The Senate will see significant turnover next session, with at least five senators departing (potentially six if Sen. Nathan Johnson wins the Attorney General race).

Three Senate incumbents faced challengers but won comfortably with Lt. Gov. Patrick’s strong support.

Republicans hold the Senate majority (20–11 in 2025). But Democrats flipped SD9 in the January 2026 special election.

Runoff: The only Senate runoff is among the Republicans in SD19, where Marcus Cardenas (44.3%) and Robert Marks, Jr (32.1%) are competing to face incumbent Democrat Sen. Roland Gutierrez in November.

U.S. Congress

Texas’s congressional races had no sweeping surprises but included some key upsets, runoffs, and first test of Texas’s recent mid-decade redistricting:

• CD2: Steve Toth upsets incumbent Rep. Dan Crenshaw (only Texas GOP House member without President Trump’s endorsement).
• CD34: Eric Flores (R) wins primary and faces Rep. Vicente Gonzalez (D) in redrawn competitive district in November.
• CD28: Rep. Henry Cuellar (D) wins primary and faces Tano Tijerina (R) in November in a key race for South Texas voter trends.
• CD23: Rep. Tony Gonzales (41.7%) is in a runoff with Brandon Herrera (43.3%) for the Republican nomination; the winner will face Katy Padilla Stout (D) in November.
• CD9 & 35: President Trump and Gov. Abbott endorsed opponents; both head to runoffs (Briscoe Cain vs. Alex Mealer in CD9; John Lujan vs. Carlos De La Cruz in CD35).
• CD18: Democrats Christian Menefee (46.1%) and Rep. Al Green (44.2%) head to a runoff.
• CD33: Democrats Colin Allred (45.5%) and Rep. Julie Johnson (34%) head to a runoff.

Upcoming Dates on Interest:

• Primary Runoff Election:
• Early Voting: May 18–22, 2026.
• Election Day: Tuesday, May 26, 2026.
• General Election:
• Early Voting: October 19–30, 2026.
• Election Day: Tuesday, November 3, 2026.

PSA: Every vote counts. In the race to replace retiring Rep. Gary VanDeaver, the votes were at one point exactly tied during the evening, and Chris Spencer ended up winning by 513 votes out of 29,313 total votes.