Updated 8:30 a.m. March 4
With all of Texas' 254 counties reporting some election results, two statewide races in Texas' Democratic primary are headed to runoffs with candidates declaring victory in others. Texas Democrats aim to flip one or more top state offices in November—no Democrat has won a statewide seat in Texas since 1994, election records show.
The overview
State Rep. James Talarico, D-Austin, declared victory in the Democratic primary race for U.S. Senate late March 3, announcing in a statement that "we're about to take back Texas." Talarico received 52.99% of the vote over U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Dallas, who earned 45.68% of the vote.
Crockett conceded the race in a March 4 statement, encouraging voters to support Talarico in November.
"Texas is primed to turn blue and we must remain united because this is bigger than any one person," she said. "With the primary behind us, Democrats must rally around our nominees and win."
Talarico's opponent for the November election will not be revealed for a few months, with incumbent Sen. John Cornyn and state Attorney General Ken Paxton headed to a May 26 runoff election after neither Republican received more than 50% of the primary vote.
More details
State Rep. Gina Hinojosa, D-Austin, won the Democratic primary for Texas governor with 59.33% of the vote, unofficial results show. Hinojosa will appear on the November ballot opposite incumbent Greg Abbott, who is seeking a fourth term as the state's top elected official.
The Democratic primary race for lieutenant governor will head to a runoff, with state Rep. Vikki Goodwin of Austin earning 48.08% of the vote. She will face union leader Marcos Isaias Velez, who received 31.57% of the vote, in a May 26 overtime round. Incumbent Dan Patrick won the Republican primary for lieutenant governor and will face the Democratic nominee in November.
State Sen. Nathan Johnson, D-Dallas, will face former Galveston Mayor Joe Jaworski in a Democratic primary runoff for Texas attorney general, unofficial results indicate. Johnson secured 47.97% of the vote while Jaworski earned 26.83%. The Republican primary race is also headed to a runoff, with state Sen. Mayes Middleton of Galveston and U.S. Rep. Chip Roy of Austin vying for their party's nomination for attorney general in May.
The Democratic party's nomination for Texas comptroller is Sarah Eckhardt, a state senator from Austin who received 64.47% of the vote. Eckhardt will face Republican businessman Don Huffines in November.
Benjamin Flores won the Democratic primary race for Texas land commissioner, earning 55.81% of the vote to Jose Loya's 44.19%, unofficial results show. Flores will face Republican incumbent Dawn Buckingham in the November midterm election.
Central Texas rancher Clayton Tucker ran uncontested in the Democratic primary for state agriculture commissioner and will face Republican businessman Nate Sheets in November.
State Rep. Jon Rosenthal, D-Houston, will appear on the November ballot for state railroad commissioner after running uncontested in the Democratic primary. The Republican primary for railroad commissioner is headed to a close runoff between incumbent Jim Wright and Bo French, former chair of the Tarrant County GOP.
All results are unofficial until canvassed. Find more results from contested local and state races at communityimpact.com/voter-guide. Results from statewide races in Texas' Republican primary are available here.
Updated 1:30 a.m. March 4
With 249 of Texas' 254 counties reporting some election results early March 4, state Rep. James Talarico, D-Austin, held a steady eight-point lead over U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Dallas, in the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate. State legislators also led the Democratic primary races for governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general and comptroller, unofficial results showed.
Find more results from contested local and state races at communityimpact.com/voter-guide. Results from statewide races in Texas' Republican primary are available here.
Talarico leads U.S. Senate contest
Talarico led Crockett by nearly eight percentage points in the early hours of March 4, with the Austin Democrat holding 53.28% of the vote over Crockett's 45.45% in the Democratic primary race for U.S. Senate. Ahmad R. Hassan was in a distant third place with 1.27% of the vote, per unofficial returns.
Meanwhile, the GOP primary for U.S. Senate was poised for a May 26 runoff between incumbent John Cornyn and state Attorney General Ken Paxton, Community Impact reported. The winner of the Republican runoff will appear on the November ballot.
Austin-area lawmakers earn party nominations in two state races
Gina Hinojosa, a state representative from Austin, secured the Democratic nomination for Texas governor by a 51-point margin, unofficial results showed. Hinojosa will face incumbent Greg Abbott in the November midterm election, when Texas voters will choose between a fourth Abbott term or a fresh face. Republicans currently hold all statewide offices in Texas and no Democrat or third-party candidate has won a statewide seat since 1994, election records show.
Other results in the Democratic primary race for governor were as follows:
- Chris Bell had 9.39% of the vote
- Angela “Tia Angie” Villescaz had 6.47% of the vote
- Patricia Abrego had 5.47% of the vote
- Bobby Cole had 5.21% of the vote
- Andrew White, who withdrew from the race in January but remained on the ballot, had 5.01% of the vote
- Carlton W. Hart had 2.66% of the vote
- Jose Navarro Balbuena had 2.87% of the vote
- Zach Vance had 2.44% of the vote
Democratic state Sen. Sarah Eckhardt of Austin was poised to advance to the November ballot in the race for
state comptroller, per unofficial returns. Eckhardt, who had 65.01% of the vote as of press time, is set to face Republican businessman Don Huffines in November.
Community Impact reported that Huffines beat Acting Comptroller Kelly Hancock by nearly 35 percentage points.
In the Democratic primary race, Savant Moore had 17.92% of the vote while Michael Lange had 17.07%.
Other races
Community Impact had not called the Democratic primary races for Texas lieutenant governor and attorney general as of press time, although the races were on track to head to overtime runoffs if candidates do not secure more than 50% of the vote.
State Rep. Vikki Goodwin, D-Austin, led the Democratic primary contest for lieutenant governor with 48.98% of the vote. Marcos Isaias Velez trailed with 31.08% of the vote and Courtney Head had 19.93%, unofficial results showed.
In the Democratic primary race for attorney general, unofficial returns showed that Nathan Johnson, a state senator from Dallas, held 47.81% of the vote. Joe Jaworski received 27.44% of the vote and Anthony "Tony" Box had 24.75%.
In a race with three or more candidates, one contender must collect over half of the vote to move on to the November election. All primary runoffs will take place on May 26, according to the secretary of state, and the winner of each runoff will appear on the November ballot.
Unofficial results showed that Benjamin Flores was leading the Democratic primary race for state land commissioner, with 55.5% of the vote to Jose Loya's 44.5%. The winner of that race will face incumbent Dawn Buckingham in November after Buckingham ran uncontested in the Republican primary.
Democrat Clayton Tucker, who ran uncontested, will appear on the November ballot for Texas agriculture commissioner, while Jon Rosenthal, another uncontested Democratic primary candidate, will advance to the November election for railroad commissioner.
Posted 10:08 p.m. March 3
In the March 3 primary, Texas Democratic voters cast ballots for several of the state’s highest offices. On the ballot are an eight-way U.S. Senate race; 38 congressional seats; open seats for state attorney general and comptroller; and several other statewide offices.
The overview
Republicans currently occupy all 18 statewide offices on the ballot and no Democrat or third-party candidate has won a statewide office in Texas since 1994, election records show.
Nearly 1.4 million Democrats cast early ballots across Texas, data from the secretary of state shows, while over 1.2 million Republicans voted early. Turnout figures from election day were not available as of press time.
Community Impact is tracking the results of eight statewide races in Texas’ Democratic primary. The winner of each race will advance to the November midterm election, facing the Republican nominee for the seat and potential third-party candidates.
If no candidate receives more than 50% of the vote in a race, the two highest vote-getters will face each other in a May 26 runoff election.
With 125 of Texas’ 254 counties reporting early results, see who’s leading each Democratic primary race and get to know the candidates. Find more results from contested local and state races at communityimpact.com/voter-guide and on the secretary of state’s website. Results from statewide races in Texas' Republican primary are available here.
Talarico takes early lead in U.S. Senate race
State Rep. James Talarico, D-Austin, is leading the Democratic primary race to be Texas’ next U.S. senator, unofficial early results show.
As of press time, Talarico had 54.53% of the early vote, while U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Dallas, had 44.31% of the vote. Ahmad R. Hassan had 1.16% of the early vote.
Talarico’s early lead did not include results from Williamson County, where Talarico is from, and Crockett’s home base of Dallas County. Voting hours were extended at polling locations in both counties after they switched from countywide to precinct-based voting on March 3. Some Williamson County voters said they were unaware of precinct-based voting and were turned away from the first polling location they showed up at, Community Impact reported.
Poll hours were extended to 9 p.m. in Dallas County and 10 p.m. at two Williamson County polling locations.
Early results show Hinojosa leading nine-way governor’s race
In a crowded Democratic primary race for Texas governor, state Rep. Gina Hinojosa, D-Austin, is leading the pack by 51 percentage points, unofficial early results show.
Hinojosa had 62.35% of the early vote as of press time, followed by Chris Bell with 10.94% of the vote. Other results in the race were as follows:
- Angela “Tia Angie” Villescaz had 5.34% of the vote
- Patricia Abrego had 4.96% of the vote
- Bobby Cole had 4.7% of the vote
- Andrew White, who withdrew from the race in January but remained on the ballot, had 4.66% of the vote
- Carlton W. Hart had 2.41% of the vote
- Zach Vance had 2.33% of the vote
- Jose Navarro Balbuena had 2.3% of the vote
Goodwin takes 22-point lead in lieutenant governor raceAccording to unofficial early results, state Rep. Vikki Goodwin, D-Austin, is leading the race to be the Democratic nominee for Texas lieutenant governor. Goodwin had 51.29% of the early vote, while union leader Marcos Isaias Velez had 29.01% of the vote and contracts manager Courtney Head had 19.7% of the vote.
The lieutenant governor leads the Texas Senate and can exercise the powers of the governor if the governor dies, resigns, is removed from office or is absent from the state, according to the Texas State Historical Association.
Johnson leading attorney general race, early results show
State Sen. Nathan Johnson, D-Dallas, is leading a three-way Democratic primary race for Texas attorney general, unofficial early results show. The office is open with Republican incumbent Ken Paxton running for U.S. Senate.
As of press time, Johnson had 46.93% of the early vote, while former Galveston Mayor Joe Jaworski trailed with 29.06% of the vote. Prosecutor Anthony “Tony” Box had 24.01% of the vote.
Eckhardt leads Texas comptroller race by 49 points
State Sen. Sarah Eckhardt, D-Austin, is leading the Democratic primary race for state comptroller, according to unofficial early results. Eckhardt had a 49-point lead as of press time, with 67.01% of the early vote to Savant Moore’s 17.99%.
Michael Lange had 14.99% of the early vote.
The comptroller's office is open after former state comptroller Glenn Hegar stepped down in July to become chancellor of the Texas A&M University System. Hancock, a former state senator, currently serves as acting state comptroller and is running in the Republican primary, although he is not considered the incumbent in the race.
As Texas’ chief financial officer, the comptroller is tasked with overseeing government spending, projecting Texas' biennial budget for state legislators, reporting on statewide economic issues, and managing the state treasury and unclaimed property programs. Hancock's office also recently launched the state’s new education savings account program, as mandated by the Texas Legislature.
Early results show Flores leading land commissioner race
Benjamin Flores is leading the race for Texas land commissioner, unofficial early results show. As of press time, Flores had 54.99% of the early vote to Jose Loya’s 45.01%.
The winning Democratic candidate will face Republican incumbent Dawn Buckingham in November. Buckingham, who is seeking a second four-year term as land commissioner, is running uncontested in the Republican primary.
The General Land Office manages 13 million acres of state lands, with duties such as allocating disaster recovery funds, leasing state lands to generate revenue for the state's Permanent School Fund, preserving state landmarks such as the Alamo and overseeing several veterans programs. The GLO is Texas’ oldest state agency, according to its website.
Uncontested candidates for agriculture, railroad commissioners advance to November election
According to unofficial early results, Clayton Tucker had 689,922 votes in the Democratic primary race for state agriculture commissioner, while Jon Rosenthal had 681,906 votes in the Democratic primary race for railroad commissioner. Both candidates are running uncontested in their races and will face the corresponding Republican nominees in the November midterm election.
The Texas Department of Agriculture's duties include administering federal nutrition programs and grants; facilitating trade of agricultural products; protecting crops from pests and diseases; providing financial assistance to farmers and rural communities; and conducting consumer protection programs, according to the agency's website.
The railroad commission regulates Texas’ oil and gas industry, according to its website, while the state's railroads are under the control of the Texas Department of Transportation and the federal government. Texas has three railroad commissioners who are elected to staggered six-year terms.
What’s next?
Community Impact will update this article as election day vote totals are released. All results are unofficial until canvassed.
Visit communityimpact.com/voter-guide to see results from all contested local and state elections in your community.
