2026 Texas Supreme Court election

2026 Texas Supreme Court election

←  2024 November 3, 2026 2028 →
4 of 9 seats on the Supreme Court of Texas. 5 seats needed for a majority
Party Republican Democratic Current seats 9 0

The 2026 Texas Supreme Court election will be held on November 3, 2026, to elect four of nine justices to the Supreme Court of Texas. Primary elections will be held on March 3.

Chief Justice

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Jimmy Blacklock, incumbent justice ^[1]

Disqualified

• Steven Wayne Smith, former justice (2002–2005) ^[2]

Results

Republican primary

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Jimmy Blacklock (incumbent)
Total votes				100.00

Democratic primary

Candidates

Declared

• Cory Carlyle, former justice of Fifth Court of Appeals of Texas (2019–2024) ^{[3] [4]}
• Maggie Ellis, justice of the Third Court of Appeals of Texas (2025–present) ^[5]

Endorsements

Cory Carlyle

Newspapers

• Dallas Morning News ^[6]

Maggie Ellis

Labor unions

• Texas AFL-CIO ^[7]

Newspapers

• Austin Chronicle ^[8]
• Houston Chronicle ^[9]
• San Antonio Express-News ^[10]

Results

Democratic primary

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Cory Carlyle
	Democratic	Maggie Ellis
Total votes				100.00

Place 2

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

• James Sullivan, incumbent justice

Results

Republican primary

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	James Sullivan (incumbent)
Total votes				100.00

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Chari Kelly, justice of the Third Court of Appeals of Texas (2019–present) ^[3]

Endorsements

Chari Kelly

Labor unions

• Texas AFL-CIO ^[7]

Results

Democratic primary

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Chari Kelly
Total votes				100.00

Place 7

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Kyle Hawkins, incumbent justice ^[11]

Declined

• Jeff Boyd, former justice (2012–2025) ^[12]

Results

Republican primary

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Kyle Hawkins (incumbent)
Total votes				100.00

Democratic primary

Candidates

Declared

• Gordon Goodman, former justice of the First Court of Appeals of Texas (2019–2024) ^[4]
• Kristen Hawkins, judge of the 11th Texas District Court (2017–present) ^[3]

Endorsements

Kristen Hawkins

Newspapers

• Austin Chronicle ^[8]
• Dallas Morning News ^[13]
• Houston Chronicle ^[9]
• San Antonio Express-News ^[14]

Results

Democratic primary

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Gordon Goodman
	Democratic	Kristen Hawkins
Total votes				100.00

Place 8

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Brett Busby, incumbent justice ^[4]

Disqualified

• David Rogers, Plugerville city council member ^[2]

Results

Republican primary

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Brett Busby (incumbent)
Total votes				100.00

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Gisela Triana, justice of the Third Court of Appeals of Texas (2019–present), Democratic nominee for Texas Supreme Court Place 8 in 2020 ^[3]

Democratic primary

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Gisela Triana
Total votes				100.00

References

1. Osibamowo, Toluwani (January 6, 2025). "Gov. Greg Abbott appoints Justice Jimmy Blacklock as next Texas Supreme Court chief justice". KERA. Retrieved 30 December 2025.
2. Maguir, Hannah (December 24, 2025). "Would-be Texas Supreme Court candidates rejected over petition signatures". Spectrum News 1. Retrieved 30 December 2025.
3. Klibanoff, Eleanor (February 3, 2026). "Texas Supreme Court primaries: Who is running and what to know". The Texas Tribune . Retrieved February 16, 2026.
4. "Candidate Information". Texas Secretary of State. Retrieved 30 December 2025.
5. Taffet, David (December 19, 2025). "LGBTQ+ candidates in Texas Dem Primary". Dallas Voice. Retrieved 30 December 2025.
6. "We Recommend in the Democratic primary for Texas Supreme Court chief justice" . February 8, 2026. Retrieved February 11, 2026.
7. "Texas AFL-CIO COPE Announces 2026 Primary Election Endorsements". January 25, 2026. Retrieved January 25, 2026.
8. "March 2026 Primary Election Endorsements for the Austin Area". February 12, 2026. Retrieved February 12, 2026.
9. "Maggie Ellis and Kristen Hawkins for Texas Supreme Court in Democratic primary". February 9, 2026. Retrieved February 11, 2026.
10. "In Democratic primary, Maggie Ellis best for Texas Supreme Court chief justice". February 9, 2026. Retrieved February 11, 2026.
11. Osibamowo, Toluwani (October 24, 2025). "Former Texas solicitor general, Trump transition team lawyer named state Supreme Court justice". KERA. Retrieved 30 December 2025.
12. "Justice Jeff Boyd to retire from the Supreme Court of Texas". Texas Judicial Branch. April 9, 2025. Retrieved 30 December 2025.
13. "We recommend in the Democratic primary race for Texas Supreme Court Place 7". The Dallas Morning News . February 8, 2026. Retrieved February 16, 2026.
14. "Kristen Hawkins best in Democratic primary for Texas Supreme Court, Place 7". San Antonio Express-News . February 9, 2026. Retrieved February 16, 2026.

External links

Official campaign websites for Texas Supreme Court

Chief Justice

• Jimmy Blacklock (R) for Chief Justice
• Cory Carlyle (D) for Chief Justice
• Maggie Ellis (D) for Chief Justice

Place 2

• Chari Kelly (D) for TX Supreme Court
• James Sullivan (R) for TX Supreme Court

Place 7

• Kristen Hawkins (D) for TX Supreme Court
• Kyle Hawkins (R) for TX Supreme Court

Place 8

• Brett Busby (R) for TX Supreme Court
• Gisela Triana (D) for TX Supreme Court