Capitol Update

Early voting for the May 26th runoff is currently underway and goes until this Friday, May 22nd. You can find your early voting and election day poll locations at this link to the Texas Secretary of State’s website. There are three Republican and two Democratic statewide races in a runoff. A breakdown of each race is below:

Republican Runoffs

• U.S. Senate race between incumbent Senator John Cornyn and Attorney General Ken Paxton. In a last-minute move, President Trump endorsed Paxton this morning on Truth Social, calling him a "true MAGA Warrior." This is a significant blow to Cornyn, who narrowly came ahead at 42% to Paxton's 41% in the March 3rd primary.
• Attorney General race between U.S. Representative Chip Roy and State Senator Mayes Middleton. Attorney General Paxton and Lt. Governor Patrick came out in support of Senator Middleton, who came in first place with 39% of the vote, while Congressman Roy came in second place with 31% of the vote.
• Texas Railroad Commission race between Commissioner Jim Wright and Bo French. Also, in a last-minute endorsement, Governor Abbott endorsed Commissioner Wright for re-election on Monday night. The winner of the Republican primary runoff will determine who faces Democrat Jon Rosenthal in November. No Democrat has won statewide in Texas in decades, so the outcome of this month's election will likely determine who presides over the regulatory agency overseeing the Texas oil and gas industry.

Democrat Runoffs

• Attorney General race between State Senator Nathan Johnson and former Galveston Mayor Joe Jaworski. Senator Johnson almost took home the nomination during the primary, falling 1.9% short of the 50% threshold needed to win outright.
• Lieutenant Governor race between State Representative Vikki Goodwin and Marcos Vélez, a labor union activist. Representative Goodwin secured 48% of the votes cast, with Vélez coming in second with 31.5% of the votes.

WHAT'S NEXT?
After the runoff election, all eyes will be on the General Election. The last day to register to vote will be October 5, 2026. Early voting will run from October 19 through October 30, and Election Day is November 3rd.
The Texas House and Senate continue to work through their respective interim charges with several interim hearings scheduled throughout the coming weeks.

Texas House Committee Schedule

• Criminal Jurisprudence Committee met today at 10 a.m.
• Homeland Security, Public Safety & Veterans' Affairs will meet on May 28 at 10 a.m.

Texas Senate Committee Schedule

• Health & Human Services will meet on May 27 at 9:30 a.m.
• State Affairs will meet on June 23 at 9 a.m.
• Business & Commerce will meet on June 24 at 9 a.m.