Texas Congressional Candidates

[jimrtex]

Filing has closed for the May 29 primaries.

Two incumbents, Ron Paul and Charlie Gonzalez did not file for re-election and there are 4 new seats.   Based on overlap, I'll treat TX-25 as a new district, and TX-35 as a continuation of TX-25.

TX-14 (Ron Paul's seat)

There are 11 Republican candidates, and 2 Democrats, including Nick Lampson.  Only two of the Republicans have any sort of prominent connection to Paul on their campaign website.  The most prominent Republican is Randy Weber, a Texas representative.

TX-15 (Ruben Hinojosa)

For some reason, he has drawn 4 Republican and 4 Democratic challengers.

TX-16 (Silvestre Reyes)

Two Republican and 3 Democratic challengers.

TX-20 (Charlie Gonzalez's seat)

Joaquin Castro is the only Democrat.  The interim court map drew him into TX-20 (by one block), and Gonzalez announced that he was retiring to make some money.  Meanwhile it switched TX-35 to make it a district for Ciro Rodriguez, and get him out of TX-23.   The legislative map would have put Castro into TX-20, but he didn't know that Gonzalez would be retiring, so he was running in TX-35 against Lloyd Doggett (Doggett claims that when Castro first approached him about running for Congress, he though Castro was thinking about TX-23 where he actually lived).  This will be the first time since 1960 that Charlie or his father, Henry B. have not represented the district.

TX-23 (Quico Canseco)

Democrat candidates are Ciro Rodiguez, who lost to Canseco in 2010; John Bustamante, son of Albert Bustamante, who lost to Henry Bonilla in 1992; and Pete Gallego, Texas representative from the Trans-Pecos.

TX-25 (open, Travis to Tarrant)

Essentially a new district with only 30% of voters from the current TX-25.  12 Republicans have filed, including the Williams brothers, Michael and Roger.  Michael, formerly chairman of the Railroad Commission and Roger, formerly Secretary of State, first were running for the US Senate, and then switched TX-33 before that district was moved eastward.

TX-27 (Blake Farenthold)

This district retains a larger share of the current district that TX-34 as it flips northward.  There are 3 Republican challengers to Farenthold and 4 Democrats.

TX-30 (Eddie Bernice Johnson)

Barbara Mallory Caraway, a Texas representative is challenging Johnson.

TX-33 (new Hispanic plurality district in Tarrant and Dallas counties)

11 Democratic candidates, with the most prominent Marc Veasey, a black Texas representative from Fort Worth.

TX-34 (new district, the southern part of TX-27)

8 Democratic candidates, with the most prominent Filemon Vela.  The federal courthouse in Brownsville is named after his father, Filemon Vela, Sr.  His wife, Rose Vela, ran for the Republican nomination for a Texas Supreme Court position in 2010.

TX-35 (Lloyd Doggett)

The largest share of this district is from TX-25, and it has the largest share of TX-25, though more of the district is in Bexar County.  Doggett faces Sylvia Romo, Bexar County Tax Collector-Assessor, Maria Luisa Alvarado, who was the Democratic Lt. Governor candidate in 2006.

TX-36 (new district, looks like East Texas, but is actually SE Harris County district)

12 Republicans running, with the most prominent Mike Jackson, Texas senator from SE Harris County and Steve Stockman, former US Representative.