The Democratic Primary Elections In Texas - Part Two
Blue Hopes in the Red State: Unpacking part two of the Democratic Primaries in Texas.
This article covers the State Senate and some House races. For a breakdown of the Democratic primaries in the U. S. Senate, Railroad Commissioner, and Congress, see The Democratic Primary Elections In Texas - Part One.
Once again, I must express how delighted I am that we have so many Democrats running for office up and down the ballot. This will be a motivating factor for a strong turnout for Texas Democrats next year.
For the complete list of everyone running in every seat, check here:
Important 2024 primary election days:
January 1, 2024: First day to apply for a ballot by mail.
February 5, 2024: Last Day to Register to Vote.
February 20, 204: First Day of Early Voting.
February 23, 2024: Last Day to Apply for Ballot by Mail.
March 1, 2024: Last Day of Early Voting.
March 5, 2024: Election Day!
Texas Senate.
The Texas Senate is a big deal this year. Not one Republican is running unopposed
, and considering that almost every Republican participated in the fraudulent acquittal of Ken Paxton, it’s a deal that we see Democrats working to hold them accountable.
SD07:
Senate District 07 is currently held by Paul Bettencourt, deeply entrenched in the Heritage Foundation and ALEC. Bettencourt has spent his entire political career pushing legislation to disenfranchise people of color. What’s more sickening is that this district is 43% non-Anglo. Of course, Bettencourt hasn’t had a Democratic challenger in many years. So, even though the Texas Politics Project lists this district as 16+R, it’s interesting to see how it swings with a Democrat on the ballot.
Nasir Malik (D)
Michelle Gwinn (D)
Two Democrats are running for Bettencourt’s seat. Michelle Gwinn has no website or social media that I could find. Nasir Malik is a businessman with a record of working in the local community.
SD15:
John Whitmire held Senate District 15, but since he was sworn in as Houston mayor this week, it’s an empty seat. Greg Abbott will call a special election for this seat within the next few weeks. Assuming everyone on the ballot for the March primary will also be on the special election ballot, there are six Democratic candidates.
Karthik Soora (D)
Molly Cook (D)
Todd Litton (D)
Jarvis Johnson (D)
Michelle Bonton (D)
Beto Cardenas (D)
In September, Lone Star Left endorsed Karthik Soora. You can read about that here:
December 31 was the last filing deadline for candidates to report their finances. We don’t have those reports yet. However, from the reports before, Soora has been knocking fundraising out of the park.
You can read my endorsement to understand why I and many others like Soora as a candidate. Right now, it looks like Soora is the solid frontrunner.
SD16:
This is the primary race that no one saw coming.
Nathan Johnson* (D)
I gave a full breakdown of this race here:
I’ve already got word of a scheduled debate for this race. I will find out about other debates and plan to publish a complete list of upcoming debates in the next week (as well as where you can watch them).
SD30:
This is a seat left open by the retiring Drew Springer. Four Republicans are running in the Republican primary, and three in the Democratic primary. And on the Republican side, it’s a hot mess. One of the GOP hopefuls doesn’t live in the district and is being sued to get him out of the race. Another GOP hopeful is stalking me on Twitter (Cody Clark). He claims to be a card-carrying member of the Choctaw Nation but spent two days in my mentions bashing diversity, equity, and inclusion. Then, there is extra drama with them all accusing one another of being a “Rino.”
Three Democrats in this race are:
Matthew McGee (D)
Michael Braxton (D)
Dale Frey (D)
Matthew McGee doesn’t have a website yet but has a TikTok account. He’s from Gainesville, which I have a soft spot for because of the friends I made up there during the Confederate statue fight. Michael Braxton is from Denison and has been a community pillar for many years. As a barber, he gave free haircuts to school kids every month. Dale Frey hails from Denton County and has been a government employee for many years.
Interestingly, in this district, all three Democratic candidates come from different counties. Kudos to county parties that pulled this off.
Texas House.
HD19:
Ellen Troxclair currently holds this House district. She hates poor people and wrote legislation last year to target and hurt them. Then, she blocked me on social media. In the Republican primary, ex-Rep, January 6ther, and Texit advocate Kyle Biedermann has thrown in his hat against Troxclair. It’ll be an exciting primary.
The two Democrats running for this seat are:
Dwain Handley (D)
Zach Vance (D)
Handley doesn’t have a website or social media, but I found a video of him on YouTube. Zach Vance has previously run for multiple other seats in Texas as a Democrat and Republican.
HD22:
Incumbent Christian Manuel filed for reelection, and several of us were caught off guard by the announcement of two other Democrats challenging him. I was unable to find a website or social media for either. It’s interesting, though, because Jamie Price is the son of ex-Rep Al Price, who served in the Texas House from 1977 to 1999.
Christian Manuel* (D)
Luther Wayne Martin III (D)
Al “Jamie” “rice” r. (D)
This district encompasses Port Arthur, which Conservative oil-suckers have turned into a cancer cluster and dumping grounds for oil refineries. While we are facing down the barrel of a climate crisis, it would be refreshing for one or all of these candidates to take a position of clean energy. Unfortunately, because the fossil fuel industry is such a huge employer in this district, it may not happen. We’ll have to wait and see. This is one race to keep an eye on.
HD27:
Ron Reynolds is well-liked and has been in office for 13 years. This year, he has a Democratic primary challenger.
Ron Reynolds* (D)
Rodrigo Carreon (D)
Unfortunately, Carreon doesn’t have a website or social media up yet, so we don’t know anything about him. We’ll have to revisit this race. If Carreon wants to unseat Reynolds, he’ll have to make a solid case to the voters.
HD28:
The Democratic Party of Fort Bend County should have it easier than most counties, as this county is one of the most diverse counties in America. In fact, HD28 is only 42.1% Anglo. Incumbent Gary Gates is a millionaire slumlord who has spent his political career passing laws to enrich himself further. It should be an easy flip, but nothing is easy for Democrats in Texas.
Here are the two Democrats running for this seat:
Nelvin Adriatico (D)
Marty Rocha (D)
Neither have websites yet. Nelvin Adriatico ran against Gates in 2022 (he didn’t have a website back then, either). Gates won in 2022 by 23 points, but the voter turnout was only 46%.
HD34:
This is the seat left open by retiring Democrat Abel Herrera. Two Democrats are vying for this seat:
Roland Barrera (D)
Roland Barrera is a Corpus Christi City Councilman, and Soloman Ortiz Jr served in the Texas House from 2006 to 2011. Ortiz’s dad also served in the Texas House from 1983 to 2011. Both have government experience. This seat will remain blue, so it’ll be up to voters to decide which is better for them. Both have their platforms on their websites, although Ortiz’s is more extensive and shows him to be a solid progressive.
HD37:
House District 37 should never have gone red in the first place and only did because Democrats underperformed so heavily in 2022. Janie Lopez (R) is the incumbent and is awful.
Four Democrats are in this primary against her:
Ruben Cortez Jr. (D)
Alex Dominguez (D)
Jonathan Gracia (D)
Before Lopez won this seat, it was held by Alex Dominguez. He held it for two sessions. Then, in 2022, he ran for Senate District 27, left open by retiring Senator Eddie Lucio. Morgan Lamantia (D) ultimately won SD27. I’m glad to see Dominguez running again as I thought him to be pretty effective in the House. Dominguez does have a leg up on the other Democrats because he previously held HD37 and has the name recognition, but that’s not always an automatic win.
Ruben Cortez served on the State Board of Education from 2012 - 2020. In 2020, he challenged Senator Lucio’s Lucio’st did not win. In 2022, he ran for HD37 but lost the Democratic primary by three points. He hasn’t given up, though. With experience as an elected official, Cortez wants to serve the people of South Texas.
Jonathan Gracia is a former Cameron County Assistant District Attorney and Justice of the Peace. Carol Lynn Sanchez is an attorney in San Benito with loads of community work.
All four candidates are well-qualified and would be great picks to replace Jeanie Lopez. I hope there is a debate about this race because it would be fantastic.
HD45:
Incumbent of House District 45, Erin Zwiener is popular and effective. Her challenger must prove to voters that he can be more effective than her.
Erin Zwiener* (D)
Chevo Pastrano (D)
Chevo Pastrano is one of the top-rated Criminal Defense attorneys in San Marcos. His platform is fairly progressive, but as far as ideas go, I don’t see a difference between him and Zwiener. Pastrano has a lot of local endorsements and has been packing the House at his campaign events. I searched his website and social media for clues as to why he thinks he could do a better job for the people of HD45, and I couldn’t find anything solid.
This district is 40% Hispanic. Will the demographics of this district be an impacting factor on the Democratic primary election? It’s possible, and I think it will be interesting to see.
HD50:
Everyone loves James Talarico. We were mad at him for a little while for the quorum return, but we forgave him after his intense fight in the 88th Legislature. Some have known him as Texas’ Progressive Darling in the last few years. I never called him that, so I don’t know if he’s still known for that. He does have a Democratic challenger this election.
James Talarico* (D)
Nathan Boynton (D)
Not much is known about Nathan Boynton besides that he’s a business owner. He doesn’t have a social media presence, and his issues aren’t on his website. I predict this will be an easy win for Talarico.
HD52:
House District 52 is in Williamson County (WilCo) and is currently held by Caroline Harris. WilCo went blue in 2020, and I expect it to go blue again. This seat has a high chance of flipping, but which Democrat will flip it?
Jennie Birkholz (D)
Angel Carroll (D)
I’ve been asked to endorse this race (not by the candidates, but by people in their campaigns). At this point, I don’t have an opinion until new financial reports come out on January 15, which may tell us more. As of the last filing period before that, both Birkholz and Carroll have raised close to the same amount. However, I’m unsure if either has raised enough for an effective campaign. We’ll see what the January 15 report says.
Birkholz runs a national healthcare consulting firm that develops and implements creative solutions to address mental health, the opioid crisis, and social determinants of health to improve the lives of others. She also served on two White House Commissions on behavioral health and the opioid crisis.
Carroll was abandoned in the Texas foster care system as a teenager, which fueled her future as an activist. At the age of 23, Governor Abbott appointed her to the Texas Juvenile Justice Advisory Board. She also established a consulting firm collaborating with nonprofit organizations and government agencies regarding best practices for dealing with vulnerable populations.
Democratic candidates in this race have solid backgrounds and would be substantially better than Caroline Harris.
HD63:
This seat is currently held by Bem Bumgarner (R), who is a firearms dealer and lover of fascism. Two Democrats are running for this seat:
Michelle Beckley (D)
Denise Wooten (D)
Michelle Beckley previously held HD65 but was drawn out of it in the last redistricting. Beckley has some baggage, but I will always credit her for her ability to fundraise and work hard on an election. She’s a She’sstar campaigner.
Denise Wooten ran for this seat in the last election but lost to Bumgarner by 11 points. There was just too much going on in 2022 with Democratic underperformance and it being a non-presidential year to say we’ll see if it’s a repeat in 2024. I heard in the rumor mill that Wooten threw her hat in this race because 63 could flip, and Beckley had baggage. I’ll ask around about any planned debates. It’s hard to say which is the better pick without seeing these two candidates go head-to-head.
HD67:
Jeff Leach in House District 67 was one of Ken Paxton’sPaxton’sment managers, which has put him in the Republican crosshairs. Leach has a Republican primary candidate, but I think regardless of how that goes, it’ll impact Republican voter turnout negatively in this district.
Two Democrats have entered into the race for HD67.
Jefferson Nunn (D)
Makala Washington (D)
I haven’t found a website or social media on Makala Washington yet, but I’ll keep an eye out. Jefferson Nunn is a local business owner.
Although we could see a depressed Republican turnout in this district in November, both Democrats running need to step up their game if they want to win. We’ll revisit this race soon.
HD76:
Dr. Suleman Lalani currently holds House District 76. Although I have some criticisms about his votes last session, I know he’s a Democrat. His opponent, however, I’m not about.
Suleman Lalani* (D)
Vanesia Johnson (D)
I want to be clear on this because it is just my (Michelle Davis) opinion, and I cannot solidly prove it yet. But I believe that Vanesia Johnson is a Republican plant. Feel free to search her website and social media. You will find anti-trans and pro-voucher positions. She also uses language very similar to the GOP, accusing the Democratic Party of being the same party they were before political realignment and highlighting how Conservative Democrats in the past denied Black Americans civil rights. This is just not language that Democrats use. She’s also gone negative against Lalani, which is not something Democrats typically do.
Look for yourself; you be the judge, but my personal opinion is she is a GOP plant.
HD77:
This is the El Paso seat left open by retiring Representative Lina Ortega. It will remain blue. Four Democrats have thrown their hat into the race:
Norma Chavez (D)
Vince Perez (D)
Homer Reza (D)
Norma Chavez was a House Rep from 1997 to 2011, although she hasn’t published a website yet. Alexandra Anello is a community activist working in the nonprofit sector. Vince Perez is a former El Paso County Commissioner. Homer Reza is a local businessman with strong ties to community work.
All four seem like solid candidates. I’ll start asking around to find out if any debates are planned.
HD80:
House District 80 is the district with Uvalde and is now open with Representative Tracy King’s retirement. Democrats in this district have had it hard since, after the Robb Elementry Massacre, the county went for Abbott by 22 points. It should be noted that voter turnout in Uvalde County's last election was only 45%.
Republicans are dumping a ton of money into this race, making it one of their target flips. However, Uvalde County was +20 Trump in 2020, with a 59% turnout. There are five other counties in this district.
Three Republicans are in the GOP primary, including Don McLaughlin, who was the jackass that called Beto a “sick son of a bitch” when Beto confronted Abbott in the wake of the shooting. Since the Uvalde Massacre, McLaughin has spent a tremendous amount of time on Fox News, bringing himself national attention.
Five Democrats will be in the primary:
Rosie Cuellar (D)
Carlos Lopez (D)
Graciela Villarreal (D)
Rosie Cuellar is the sister of Congressional Democrat Henry Cuellar and a former judge. She has name recognition, which might give her a leg up. Cecilia Castellano is the president of a design and construction firm. Dr. Teresa Johnson-Hernandez is a healthcare provider in the district. Carlos Lopez is the Democratic County Chairman for Uvalde County. I couldn’t find a website for Graciela Villareal, but I did find a video from her on Facebook.
Will HD70 flip red? I don’t think so, but I know Republicans are going to work hard to make it happen. We’ll see how this race shapes up and revisit it soon.
HD97:
House District 97 is flippable by 2026 but will require a very hard-fought campaign by Democrats to flip sooner. This seat is being left open by Representative Craig Goldman (R), who is running for TX12.
Three Democrats are running in this primary:
Diane Symons (D)
Carlos Walker (D)
William Thorburn (D)
I will definitely will endorse someone in this race, probably in February. Neither Diane Symons nor William Thorburn have websites yet. I spoke with Diane Symons several weeks back, and she has some excellent ideas. William Thornburn has a YouTube account where he calls himself a “Conservative Democrat.” Dr. Carlos Walker has been the director of the Fort Worth ISD Family Action Center since 2019 and is a former principal of Dunbar High School and Morningside Middle School.
HD100:
House District 100 is Jasmine Crockett’s former district and is currently held by Representative Venton Jones. He has three primary opponents this year.
Venton Jones* (D)
Barbara Caraway (D)
Sandra Crenshaw (D)
Barbara Caraway ran for the TX30 seat, formerly held by Eddie Bernice Johnson, now Jasmine Crockett, six times, losing with only a tiny sliver of the vote. Stonewall Democrats of Dallas have issued a warning to voters about Sandra Crenshaw relating to her history of anti-LGBTQ comments. Justice McFarlane is a younger, more progressive candidate and the only real contender against Jones.
Stay tuned for part three (the final part) of the rest of the Democratic Primary races.
This article is getting long, so in the next several days, I’ll publish part three, covering the rest of the House and Supreme Court races. There are 61 days left until the primary election, which is plenty of time for anything to happen. Next week, I’ll also publish the first list of Democratic Debates. So, stay tuned.
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