With 50 of 50 election day precincts reporting, Vince Santini has likely won the Republican runoff for Montgomery County's 457th district court judge. Santini garnered 18,767 votes, or 78.06% of total votes, according to Montgomery County election data. Opponent Eric Yollick received 5,274 votes.
However, Montgomery County results may not include all absentee ballots, and all results are unofficial until canvassed.
Santini did not immediately respond to requests for comment on election night.
Posted 7:22 p.m.
The runoff election for judge of Texas' new 457th district court judge is underway, and two Republican attorneys are vying for the spot: Eric Yollick and Vince Santini. As of 7 p.m. July 14, Santini is leading the race with 12,562 votes, or 78.61%. Yollick has received 3,419 votes.
The winner will face Marc M. Meyer, chair of the Montgomery County Democratic Party, in the November general election.
All results are unofficial until canvassed.
The March 3 primary represents the inaugural election for the district court, first established through the omnibus court operations bill Senate Bill 891 that was passed in the 86th Texas Legislature in 2019. That bill authorized the creation of several new judicial districts throughout the state including the 457th, which was first proposed by state Rep. Steve Toth, R-The Woodlands, in House Bill 1437.
The new judicial district's creation was spurred by the backlog of civil cases experienced in Montgomery County's existing courts.
