2022 ELECTIONS

Want to win a statewide political race in Texas that's not at the very top of the ballot? It helps a lot if your party's top candidate wins — or at least runs a close second.

Gov. Greg Abbott says he can "guarantee" there won't be blackouts this winter in Texas after one that knocked out power for some people for four days last February. That's the kind of pre-election prediction that can make a weather forecaster more useful than a political poll.

The actor said in a video Sunday that “political leadership” is a “path that I’m choosing not to take at this moment.”

Krause had been among the primary challengers to Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton, whose legal problems have made him a target for both parties next year.

Gohmert is at least the fourth GOP primary opponent that Paxton will face. At least three Democrats are also running for the job.

Whitmire, the longest-serving member of the Texas Senate, will first run for reelection to the chamber in 2022 before his mayoral run the following year.

The lawmaker has represented parts of central and southeast Houston in state House District 147 since 1991.

At least three other Democrats and four Republicans are vying for the office that GOP incumbent George P. Bush is leaving to run for attorney general.

O’Rourke hit the campaign trail with a pitch narrowly focused on several issues that are largely popular with voters, leaving behind the more incendiary rhetoric from his presidential campaign.

They didn't make a majority of Texas voters happy on a single issue, but the Republican majority in the Legislature made most of their own voters happy — and then drew maps that minimize political threats to them in the November general election.

In this edition of TribCast, Ross talks to pollsters Joshua Blank, James Henson and Daron Shaw about the latest University of Texas/Texas Tribune Poll, focused on the 2022 elections and this year’s legislative issues.

In this week’s episode, Matthew speaks with Patrick, Reese and Neelam about Tuesday’s special election results, poll numbers in the governor’s race and oral arguments in the U.S. Supreme Court over Texas’ abortion law.

Ordaz Perez announced she will challenge Fierro after new political maps forced her to run against another incumbent if she wanted to seek a new term. Democrats have criticized the GOP-drawn House map for diluting the El Paso area's representation.

Garza, a former lawyer for the American Civil Liberties Union, had been running to succeed retiring U.S. Rep. Filemon Vela, D-Brownsville. U.S. Rep. Vicente Gonzalez, D-McAllen, is now running for Vela's seat after redistricting made Gonzalez's seat more competitive for Republicans.

U.S. Rep. Vicente Gonzalez announced last week he’ll seek reelection in a new seat, leaving his 15th Congressional District open for the 2022 election. Candidate filing begins Nov. 13.

State Rep. Matt Krause, a Republican candidate for attorney general, wants public schools to explain some of the books in their libraries. He's got questions about content, along with a way to get some attention from voters.

The former state Supreme Court justice is one of three Texas Republicans vying to unseat incumbent Attorney General Ken Paxton.

The fast-growing region likely will see a considerable number of new state and federal lawmakers after the 2022 election. And in many cases, they will be representing districts whose boundaries have significantly shifted.

“Turn Texas Blue” was the Democratic rally cry in the 2020 elections. It didn’t happen, and with the maps the Texas Legislature is drawing, it’s not in the cards for 2022, either.

The likely new district comes as Texas Republicans continue to try to make new inroads in South Texas after the 2020 election.

Huffines has been the most vocal fellow Republican taking on Abbott, pressuring him over his COVID-19 response, the border and other hot-button issues.

Democratic state senators want the webpage reinstated. The resources were removed after Don Huffines, a Republican gubernatorial candidate, criticized their inclusion on a state website.

Paxton is facing challenges from three fellow Republicans in his bid for a third term. In interviews at The Texas Tribune Festival, they each took him to task for the legal problems he has accrued in office, with two saying he should resign.

Israel’s decision creates a vacancy in Austin-area House District 50 with redistricting underway at the Legislature.

Within hours, Flores got the endorsement of Sen. Dawn Buckingham, R-Lakeway, who is vacating the seat to run for land commissioner, and then Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who presides over the Senate.

The Fort Worth lawmaker, who has been close to Paxton, is the third serious primary challenger to emerge.

With a big endorsement and a record-setting fundraising period behind him, Texas' governor is in a political sweet spot.

The news of her decision comes two days after the current land commissioner, George P. Bush, announced he was running for attorney general next year, challenging fellow Republican Ken Paxton.