2022 Texas Senate election

2022 Texas Senate election

←  2020 November 8, 2022 2024  →
All of the 31 seats in the Texas Senate 16 seats needed for a majority
Majority party Minority party   Leader Larry Taylor Carol Alvarado Party Republican Democratic Leader's seat 11th – Friendswood 6th – Houston Last election 8 seats, 53.28% 8 seats, 44.59% Seats before 18 13 Seats won 19 12 Seat change 1 1 Popular vote 2,948,643 2,287,700 Percentage 54.06% 41.94% Swing 0.78% 2.65%
Results by seat gains Results by vote share      Democratic hold      Republican hold     Republican gain Republican:     50–60%     60–70%     70–80%     ≥90% Democratic:     50–60%     60–70%     80–90%     ≥90%

The 2022 Texas Senate elections were held on November 8, 2022.

Under the provisions of the Constitution of Texas, all 31 senate districts across the state of Texas were up for re-election, as the election was the first after the decennial United States Census. Numerous other federal, state, and local elections were also held on this date. The winners of this election served in the 88th Texas Legislature, with seats apportioned among the 2020 United States census. Republicans had held a majority in the Texas Senate since January 14, 1997, as a result of the 1996 elections.

Retirements

As of April 2022, six state senators, including four Republicans and two Democrats, decided to retire, one of whom sought another office.

Republicans

• District 11: Larry Taylor retired. ^[1]
• District 12: Jane Nelson retired. ^[2]
• District 24: Dawn Buckingham retired to run for Texas Land Commissioner. ^[3]
• District 31: Kel Seliger retired. ^[4]

Democrats

• District 10: Beverly Powell retired. ^[5]
• District 27: Eddie Lucio Jr. retired. ^[6]

Predictions

Redistricting greatly reduced the number of competitive seats in the state, making it almost certain that the chamber would remain in Republican hands.

Statewide

Source	Ranking	As of
Sabato's Crystal Ball [7]	Safe R	May 19, 2022
CNalysis	Safe R	Nov. 7, 2022

Competitive districts

District	Incumbent	2020 Pres. [8]	CNalysis [9]	Result
19th	Roland Gutierrez	55.81% D	Likely D	55.39% D
27th	Eddie Lucio Jr. (retiring)	51.75% D	Lean R (flip)	50.19% D

Results summary

Summary of the November 8, 2022 Texas Senate election results

Party		Candidates	Votes		Seats
			No.	%	Before	Won	After	+/–
	Republican	27	2,948,643	54.06	18	19	19	1
	Democratic	22	2,287,700	41.94	13	12	12	1
	Libertarian	6	217,910	4.00	0	0	0
Total			5,454,253	100.00	31	31	31
Source:

Popular vote

Republican			54.06%
Democratic			41.94%
Libertarian			4.00%

Senate seats won

Republican			61.29%
Democratic			38.71%

Close races

District	Winner	Margin
District 27	Democratic	0.38%

Detailed results

District 1

Incumbent Republican Bryan Hughes won re-election unopposed.

District 1 general election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Bryan Hughes (incumbent)	–	100.00%
Total votes			–	100.00%
	Republican hold

District 2

Incumbent Republican Bob Hall won re-election.

District 2 general election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Bob Hall (incumbent)	172,713	61.90%
	Democratic	Prince Giadolor	106,309	38.10%
Total votes			279,022	100.00%
	Republican hold

District 3

Incumbent Republican Robert Nichols won re-election.

District 3 general election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Robert Nichols (incumbent)	213,288	77.41%
	Democratic	Steve Russell	58,285	21.16%
	Libertarian	Desarae Lindsey	3,941	1.43%
Total votes			275,514	100.00%
	Republican hold

District 4

Incumbent Republican Brandon Creighton won re-election.

District 4 general election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Brandon Creighton (incumbent)	202,341	69.94%
	Democratic	Misty Bishop	86,946	30.06%
Total votes			289,287	100.00%
	Republican hold

District 5

Incumbent Republican Charles Schwertner won re-election.

District 5 general election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Charles Schwertner (incumbent)	192,146	71.57%
	Libertarian	Misty Bishop	76,317	28.43%
Total votes			268,463	100.00%
	Republican hold

District 6

Incumbent Democrat Carol Alvarado won re-election unopposed.

District 6 general election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Carol Alvarado (incumbent)	–	100.00%
Total votes			–	100.00%
	Democratic hold

District 7

Incumbent Republican Paul Bettencourt won re-election unopposed.

District 7 general election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Paul Bettencourt (incumbent)	–	100.00%
Total votes			–	100.00%
	Republican hold

District 8

Incumbent Republican Angela Paxton won re-election.

District 8 general election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Angela Paxton (incumbent)	187,754	57.69%
	Democratic	Jonathan Cocks	128,399	39.45%
	Libertarian	Edward Kless	9,293	2.86%
Total votes			325,446	100.00%
	Republican hold

District 9

District 9 election

←  2018 November 8, 2022 2026 (special)  →

Candidate Kelly Hancock Gwenn Burud Party Republican Democratic Popular vote 166,864 111,019 Percentage 60.05% 39.95%

Precinct results Hancock:     50–60%     60–70%     70–80%     80–90%     >90% Burud:     50–60%     60–70%     70–80%     80–90%     >90% Tie:     50% No vote:

Senator before election Kelly Hancock Republican Elected Senator Kelly Hancock Republican

Incumbent Republican Kelly Hancock won re-election.

District 9 general election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Kelly Hancock (incumbent)	166,864	60.05%
	Democratic	Gwenn Burud	111,019	39.95%
Total votes			277,883	100.00%
	Republican hold

District 10

Incumbent Democrat Beverly Powell retired after her district was considerably changed during the 2021 redistricting to make it more Republican-leaning, calling the new district "unwinnable." State Representative Phil King ran for the newly-drawn seat, and because Powell withdrew after the primary, King entered the general election unopposed, guaranteeing Republicans would flip the seat. ^{[5] [10]}

District 10 general election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Phil King	–	100.00%
Total votes			–	100.00%
	Republican gain from Democratic

District 11

Incumbent Republican Larry Taylor retired. State Representative Mayes Middleton ran to replace him unopposed in the general election. ^[11]

District 11 general election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Mayes Middleton	–	100.00%
Total votes			–	100.00%
	Republican hold

District 12

Incumbent Republican Jane Nelson, who first won her seat in 1992, retired. ^[2] State Representative Tan Parker ran to replace her. ^[12]

District 12 general election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Tan Parker	213,018	61.44%
	Democratic	Francine Ly	133,679	38.56%
Total votes			346,697	100.00%
	Republican hold

District 13

Incumbent Democrat Borris Miles won re-election unopposed.

District 13 general election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Borris Miles (incumbent)	–	100.00%
Total votes			–	100.00%
	Democratic hold

District 14

Incumbent Democrat Sarah Eckhardt won re-election.

District 14 general election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Sarah Eckhardt (incumbent)	265,094	82.23%
	Libertarian	Steven Haskett	57,305	17.77%
Total votes			322,399	100.00%
	Democratic hold

District 15

Incumbent Democrat John Whitmire won re-election but had also announced his bid for mayor of Houston in the 2023 election. ^[13]

District 15 general election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	John Whitmire (incumbent)	159,125	65.33%
	Republican	George Brian Vachris	84,437	34.67%
Total votes			243,562	100.00%
	Democratic hold

District 16

Incumbent Democrat Nathan Johnson won re-election.

District 16 general election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Nathan Johnson (incumbent)	118,663	61.95%
	Republican	Brandon Copeland	72,885	38.05%
Total votes			191,548	100.00%
	Democratic hold

District 17

Incumbent Republican Joan Huffman won re-election.

District 17 general election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Joan Huffman	179,653	65.33%
	Democratic	Titus Benton	95,320	34.67%
Total votes			274,973	100.00%
	Republican hold

District 18

Incumbent Republican Lois Kolkhorst won re-election.

District 18 general election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Lois Kolkhorst	186,367	66.17%
	Democratic	Josh Tutt	95,287	33.83%
Total votes			281,654	100.00%
	Republican hold

District 19

Incumbent Democrat Roland Gutierrez won re-election.

District 19 general election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Roland Gutierrez (incumbent)	117,491	55.39%
	Republican	Robert Garza	94,613	44.61%
Total votes			212,104	100.00%
	Democratic hold

District 20

Incumbent Democrat Juan Hinojosa won re-election.

District 20 general election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Juan Hinojosa (incumbent)	102,280	59.18%
	Republican	Westley Wright	70,536	40.82%
Total votes			172,816	100.00%
	Democratic hold

District 21

Incumbent Democrat Judith Zaffirini won re-election.

District 21 general election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Judith Zaffirini (incumbent)	129,832	61.56%
	Republican	Julie Dahlberg	75,799	35.94%
	Libertarian	Arthur DiBianca	5,282	2.50%
Total votes			210,913	100.00%
	Democratic hold

District 22

Incumbent Republican Brian Birdwell won re-election.

District 22 general election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Brian Birdwell	190,988	74.26%
	Libertarian	Jeremy Schroppel	66,204	25.74%
Total votes			257,192	100.00%
	Republican hold

District 23

Incumbent Democrat Royce West won re-election unopposed.

District 23 general election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Royce West (incumbent)	–	100.00%
Total votes			–	100.00%
	Democratic hold

District 24

Incumbent Republican Dawn Buckingham retired to run for Texas Land Commissioner. ^[3] Pete Flores, who had previously represented the 19th district in the Senate, ran to replace her. ^[14]

District 24 general election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Pete Flores	187,598	64.32%
	Democratic	Kathy Jones-Hospod	104,063	35.68%
Total votes			291,661	100.00%
	Republican hold

District 25

Incumbent Republican Donna Campbell won re-election.

District 25 general election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Donna Campbell	243,966	62.83%
	Democratic	Robert Walsh	144,350	37.17%
Total votes			388,316	100.00%
	Republican hold

District 26

Incumbent Democrat Jose Menendez won re-election.

District 26 general election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Jose Menendez (incumbent)	140,799	66.55%
	Republican	Ashton Murray	70,773	33.45%
Total votes			211,572	100.00%
	Democratic hold

District 27

District 27 election

←  2020 2024  →

Nominee Morgan LaMantia Adam Hinojosa Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 88,037 87,378 Percentage 50.19% 49.81%

County results LaMantia:     50–60%     60–70% Hinojosa:     50–60%     60–70%     70–80%

Texas Senator before election Eddie Lucio Jr. Democratic Party Elected Texas Senator Morgan LaMantia Democratic Party

Incumbent Democrat Eddie Lucio Jr., often considered the most conservative Democrat in the Texas Senate, announced he would not run for re-election in November 2021. ^{[15] [16]} Lucio was the only Democrat to vote in favor of Texas' abortion laws and school voucher legislation, but all three Democrats running to replace him were pro-choice. He endorsed Morgan LaMantia despite her views on abortion, considering her to be the most moderate of the three, and she won the primary in a runoff. ^[17] She faced Republican Adam Hinojosa in the general election, who campaigned as part of a Republican effort to capitalize on Donald Trump's strong performance in the Rio Grande Valley in the 2020 election to flip multiple legislative and congressional seats in the region. ^[18]

Polling

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size [a]	Margin of error	Morgan LaMantia (D)	Adam Hinojosa (R)	Undecided
Ragnar Research Partners (R) [19] [A]	August 23–25, 2022	400 (LV)	± 4.9%	38%	43%	19%

Hypothetical polling

Generic Democrat vs. generic Republican

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size [a]	Margin of error	Generic Democrat	Generic Republican	Undecided
Ragnar Research Partners (R) [19] [A]	August 23–25, 2022	400 (LV)	± 4.9%	46%	41%	12%

LaMantia won the election by an extremely narrow margin, a result which was not confirmed until after a December recount. ^{[20] [21]}

District 27 general election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Morgan LaMantia	88,037	50.19%
	Republican	Adam Hinojosa	87,378	49.81%
Total votes			175,415	100.00%
	Democratic hold

District 28

Incumbent Republican Charles Perry won re-election unopposed.

District 28 general election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Charles Perry (incumbent)	–	100.00%
Total votes			–	100.00%
	Republican hold

District 29

Incumbent Democrat Cesar Blanco won re-election.

District 29 general election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Cesar Blanco (incumbent)	111,638	64.09%
	Republican	Derek Zubeldia	62,544	35.91%
Total votes			174,182	100.00%
	Democratic hold

District 30

Incumbent Republican Drew Springer won re-election unopposed

District 30 general election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Drew Springer (incumbent)	–	100.00%
Total votes			–	100.00%
	Republican hold

District 31

Incumbent Republican Kel Seliger, who often bucked party leadership on hardline issues such as school vouchers, putting him at odds with lieutenant governor Dan Patrick, drew several primary challengers. Foremost among them was Kevin Sparks, who was endorsed by former President Donald Trump, U.S. senator Ted Cruz, as well as lieutenant governor Dan Patrick. He quickly became the seat's frontrunner after Seliger announced he would not run for re-election. ^{[22] [23]} Sparks won the Republican primary outright, avoiding a runoff, and faced no Democratic opponent in the general election. ^[24]

District 31 general election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Kevin Sparks	–	100.00%
Total votes			–	100.00%
	Republican hold

See also

• 2022 United States House of Representatives elections in Texas
• 2022 Texas gubernatorial election
• 2022 Texas Attorney General election
• 2022 United States state legislative elections
• 2022 Texas House of Representatives election
• 2022 Texas elections

Notes

1. Key:
   A – all adults
   RV – registered voters
   LV – likely voters
   V – unclear

Notes

Partisan clients

1. This poll was sponsored by Hinojosa's campaign

References

1. Svitek, Patrick (November 30, 2021). "Longtime state Sen. Larry Taylor, best known for his work on education issues, says he won't run for reelection". The Texas Tribune . Retrieved November 30, 2021.
2. Garrett, Robert (July 5, 2021). "Veteran Denton County GOP lawmaker Jane Nelson will not seek 11th term in Texas Senate". The Dallas Morning News. Retrieved July 6, 2021.
3. Lindell, Chuck (June 7, 2021). "State Sen. Dawn Buckingham to run for Texas land commissioner". Austin American-Statesman. Retrieved June 9, 2021.
4. Barragán, James (October 20, 2021). "Texas state Sen. Kel Seliger, a Republican willing to buck his party leadership, will not seek reelection". The Texas Tribune . Archived from the original on October 20, 2021. Retrieved October 22, 2021.
5. Barragán, James (April 6, 2022). ""Unwinnable race": State Sen. Beverly Powell of Burleson ends reelection bid, citing redrawn political map". The Texas Tribune . Archived from the original on April 9, 2022. Retrieved April 9, 2022.
6. Bova, Gus (November 16, 2021). "The Texas Senate's Most Conservative Democrat Is Retiring". Texas Observer. Retrieved November 18, 2021.
7. Jacobson, Louis (May 19, 2022). "The Battle for State Legislatures" . Retrieved May 19, 2022.
8. "2022-2023 Election Data". cnalysis. February 29, 2024. Retrieved May 29, 2024.
9. "22 TX Forecast". projects.cnalysis.com. Retrieved August 12, 2024.
10. Patrick Svitek (September 27, 2021). "GOP state Rep. Phil King announces he'll run for new Republican-friendly Senate seat held by Democrat Beverly Powell". The Texas Tribune. Retrieved November 29, 2021.
12. Morris, Allie (July 7, 2021). "GOP Rep. Tan Parker to seek Senate seat being vacated by North Texas lawmaker Jane Nelson". The Dallas Morning News.
13. McGuinness, Dylan; Scherer, Jasper (November 19, 2021). "State Sen. John Whitmire announces he will run for mayor of Houston in 2023". Houston Chronicle . Archived from the original on November 20, 2021. Retrieved November 20, 2021.
14. Jackie Wang (September 21, 2021). "Former state Sen. Pete Flores says he's running for proposed Senate District 24". San Antonio Report.
15. Svitek, Patrick (November 4, 2021). "Democrat Eddie Lucio Jr., known for voting with Republicans on key issues, to retire after three decades in Texas Senate". The Texas Tribune. Retrieved February 13, 2024.
16. Davila, Gaige (November 5, 2021). "Progressives hope Texas State Senator Eddie Lucio Jr.'s retirement signals new era". TPR. Retrieved February 13, 2024.
17. Svitek, Patrick (May 25, 2022). "Moderate Democrats win two key South Texas runoffs, while another is too close to call". The Texas Tribune. Retrieved February 13, 2024.
18. Svitek, Patrick (October 23, 2022). "Donald Trump energizes South Texas voters ahead of early voting as Republicans predict red "tsunami"". The Texas Tribune. Retrieved February 13, 2024.
19. Ragnar Research Partners (R)
20. Clark, Steve (November 9, 2022). "LaMantia edges out Hinojosa: District 27 state Senate race was a squeaker". MyRGV.com. Retrieved February 13, 2024.
21. Yañez, Alejandra (December 14, 2022). "LaMantia remains winner after recount for Senate District 27". KVEO-TV. Retrieved February 13, 2024.
22. Johnson, Brad (January 31, 2022). "Oilman Kevin Sparks Emerges as Clear Frontrunner to Succeed Sen. Seliger in West Texas Seat". The Texan. Retrieved May 16, 2022.
23. Barragán, James (October 20, 2021). "Texas state Sen. Kel Seliger of Amarillo won't seek reelection". The Texas Tribune. Retrieved February 6, 2026.
24. Doreen, Stewart (March 4, 2022). "With Sparks victory, Midland got its regional representative". Midland Reporter-Telegram . Retrieved May 16, 2022.