The April 13th runoff results are in. Two Texas House incumbents lost but one prevailed. Three contests determined general election challengers for incumbents and three races were for open seats. Don’t forget about the three special elections in legislative districts for May 8th. Those lineups have been set as well.
Democratic Primary runoffs:
House District 76: Naomi Gonzalez defeated incumbent Rep. Norma Chavez (D-El Paso). There is no Republican in the race, so Gonzalez is the Representative-elect.
Congressional District 14 –In the race to determine who will challenge Congressman Ron Paul (R-Surfside), Galena Park Chief-of-Police Robert Pruett defeated attorney Winston Cochran.
Republican Primary runoffs:
Texas Supreme Court: Judge Debra Lehrmann defeated Rick Green. Lehrmann will face Democrat Justice Jim Sharp in November.
State Board of Education: Marsha Farney defeated Brian Russell. Farney will face Democrat Judy Jennings in November.
House District 14: Rep. Fred Brown (R- Bryan) defeated challenger Buddy Winn. Brown will return to the House because there is not a Democrat in this race.
House District 47: In the battle for the right to challenge incumbent Rep. Valinda Bolton (D-Austin) in November, Paul Workman defeated Holly White Turner.
House District 52: In the battle to face incumbent Rep. Diana Maldonado (D-Round Rock) in November, Larry Gonzales defeated John Gordon.
House District 66: In the race to succeed former Rep. Brian McCall (R-Plano), Plano businessman Van Taylor defeated former Plano City Council member Mabrie Jackson. Taylor is the Representative-elect because no Democrat filed in this district. McCall resigned his seat so there will be a special election on May 8 to fill the remainder of his current term. Both Taylor and Jackson filed to run in the special election.
House District 83: Incumbent Rep. Delwin Jones (R-Lubbock) was defeated by accountant Charles Perry. Perry is the Representative-elect because no Democrat filed.
House District 84: In the race to replace retiring Rep. Carl Isett (R-Lubbock), John Frullo defeated Mark Griffin. Frullo will face Democrat Carol Morgan in November’s general election.
House District 127: In the race to replace retiring Rep. Joe Crabb (R-Kingwood), Humble school board president Dan Huberty defeated Dr. Susan Curling. Huberty will take on Democrat Joe A. Montemayor in the general election.
House District 149: Jack O’Connor defeated Dianne Williams to win the right to face incumbent Rep. Hubert Vo (D-Houston) in the general election.
Congressional District 15 – Eddie Zamora of McAllen defeated former State Representative Paul B. Haring for the right to challenge Congressman Ruben Hinojosa (D-Mercedes) this November.
Congressional District 17 – Bryan businessman Bill Flores defeated Waco businessman Rob Curnock for the right to take on Congressman Chet Edwards (D-Waco) in the General Election.
Congressional District 20 – San Antonio attorney Clayton Trotter defeated San Antonio business owner Jamie Martinez. Trotter will take on Congressman Charlie Gonzalez (D-San Antonio) in November.
Congressional District 23 – Congressman Ciro Rodriguez (D-San Antonio) will face San Antonio attorney/businessman Quico Canseco in the General Election. Canseco defeated Will Hurd of Helotes in the Republican Primary Run-off.
Congressional District 27 – Corpus Christi computer consultant Blake Farenthold got defeated Corpus Christi realtor James Duerr. Farenthold will be the November challenger to Congressman Solomon Ortiz, Sr. (D-Corpus Christi).
Congressional District 30 – DeSoto pastor Stephen Broden defeated Dallas attorney Shelton Goldstein to win the right to challenge Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-Dallas) in the general election.
Special Elections
There will be four candidates on the May 8 special election ballot to replace former Sen. Kip Averitt (R-Waco). The Texas Secretary of State certified three Republicans and one Democrat for that ballot. The candidates include former state Sen. David Sibley, retired Army Lt. Col. Brian Birdwell and Burleson businessman Darren Yancy, all Republicans, and Democrat Gayle Avant, a Baylor University political scientist.
As noted earlier in this memo, Mabrie Jackson and Van Taylor filed to face each other once more in a May 8 special election to fill the current term of former Rep. Brian McCall (R-Plano). Since Taylor won the runoff election, Jackson may choose to withdraw from the special election since the winner would only represent the district until January.
Eric Johnson, winner of the March Democratic primary in House District 100, was the only candidate to file for the May 8 special election called to fill the vacancy created by the resignation of former Rep. Terri Hodge (D-Dallas). Hodge, who has pleaded guilty to tax-evasion charges, halted her re-election bid during the primary campaign and resigned earlier this year. Under Texas law, Johnson can begin serving as the new representative for District 100 as soon as his victory is certified.