Erin Zwiener
Erin Zwiener (Democratic Party) is a member of the Texas House of Representatives, representing District 45. She assumed office on January 8, 2019. Her current term ends on January 12, 2027.
Zwiener (Democratic Party) is running for re-election to the Texas House of Representatives to represent District 45. She is on the ballot in the Democratic primary on March 3, 2026.[source]
Biography
Erin Zwiener was born in Irving, Texas, and lives in Driftwood, Texas. She earned a bachelor's degree in natural resource conservation from the University of Montana and a master's degree in creative nonfiction from the University of Arizona.[1]
Committee assignments
2023-2024
Zwiener was assigned to the following committees:
2021-2022
Zwiener was assigned to the following committees:
2019-2020
Zwiener was assigned to the following committees:
Sponsored legislation
The following table lists bills this person sponsored as a legislator, according to BillTrack50 and sorted by action history. Bills are sorted by the date of their last action. The following list may not be comprehensive. To see all bills this legislator sponsored, click on the legislator's name in the title of the table.
Elections
2026
See also: Texas House of Representatives elections, 2026
General election
The primary occurred on March 3, 2026. The general election will occur on November 3, 2026. General election candidates will be added here following the primary.
The candidate list in this election may not be complete.
Democratic primary
The candidate list in this election may not be complete.
Democratic primary for Texas House of Representatives District 45
Incumbent Erin Zwiener (D) ran in the Democratic primary for Texas House of Representatives District 45 on March 3, 2026.
Candidate | ||
 | Erin Zwiener | |
| ||||
 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Republican primary
The candidate list in this election may not be complete.
Republican primary for Texas House of Representatives District 45
Tennyson Moreno (R) ran in the Republican primary for Texas House of Representatives District 45 on March 3, 2026.
Candidate | ||
 | Tennyson Moreno | |
| ||||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Joseph Heft (R)
Endorsements
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2024
See also: Texas House of Representatives elections, 2024
General election
General election for Texas House of Representatives District 45
Incumbent Erin Zwiener defeated Tennyson Moreno in the general election for Texas House of Representatives District 45 on November 5, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Erin Zwiener (D) | 56.8 | 52,912 |
| Tennyson Moreno (R) | 43.2 | 40,312 | |
| Total votes: 93,224 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Texas House of Representatives District 45
Incumbent Erin Zwiener defeated Chevo Pastrano in the Democratic primary for Texas House of Representatives District 45 on March 5, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Erin Zwiener | 71.0 | 8,283 |
 | Chevo Pastrano | 29.0 | 3,386 | |
| Total votes: 11,669 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Republican primary election
Republican primary for Texas House of Representatives District 45
Tennyson Moreno advanced from the Republican primary for Texas House of Representatives District 45 on March 5, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Tennyson Moreno | 100.0 | 9,248 |
| Total votes: 9,248 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Campaign finance
Endorsements
Zwiener received the following endorsements.
2022
See also: Texas House of Representatives elections, 2022
General election
General election for Texas House of Representatives District 45
Incumbent Erin Zwiener defeated Michelle Lopez in the general election for Texas House of Representatives District 45 on November 8, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Erin Zwiener (D) | 59.2 | 39,078 |
 | Michelle Lopez (R) | 40.8 | 26,888 | |
| Total votes: 65,966 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Texas House of Representatives District 45
Incumbent Erin Zwiener defeated Angela Villescaz and Jessica Mejia in the Democratic primary for Texas House of Representatives District 45 on March 1, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Erin Zwiener | 80.7 | 8,224 |
 | Angela Villescaz | 12.1 | 1,237 | |
| Jessica Mejia | 7.1 | 724 | ||
| Total votes: 10,185 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Republican primary election
Republican primary for Texas House of Representatives District 45
Michelle Lopez advanced from the Republican primary for Texas House of Representatives District 45 on March 1, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Michelle Lopez | 100.0 | 8,159 |
| Total votes: 8,159 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Carrie Isaac (R)
Campaign finance
2020
See also: Texas House of Representatives elections, 2020
General election
General election for Texas House of Representatives District 45
Incumbent Erin Zwiener defeated Carrie Isaac in the general election for Texas House of Representatives District 45 on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Erin Zwiener (D) | 50.5 | 57,383 |
 | Carrie Isaac (R) | 49.5 | 56,175 | |
| Total votes: 113,558 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Republican primary runoff election
Republican primary runoff for Texas House of Representatives District 45
Carrie Isaac defeated Kent Wymore in the Republican primary runoff for Texas House of Representatives District 45 on July 14, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Carrie Isaac | 56.7 | 6,447 |
| Kent Wymore | 43.3 | 4,924 | ||
| Total votes: 11,371 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Texas House of Representatives District 45
Incumbent Erin Zwiener defeated Liliana Posada in the Democratic primary for Texas House of Representatives District 45 on March 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Erin Zwiener | 69.1 | 16,120 |
| Liliana Posada | 30.9 | 7,195 | ||
| Total votes: 23,315 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Republican primary election
Republican primary for Texas House of Representatives District 45
Carrie Isaac and Kent Wymore advanced to a runoff. They defeated Austin Talley in the Republican primary for Texas House of Representatives District 45 on March 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Carrie Isaac | 47.9 | 8,248 |
| ✔ | Kent Wymore | 41.4 | 7,135 | |
 | Austin Talley | 10.7 | 1,852 | |
| Total votes: 17,235 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Campaign finance
2018
General election
General election for Texas House of Representatives District 45
Erin Zwiener defeated Ken Strange in the general election for Texas House of Representatives District 45 on November 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Erin Zwiener (D) | 51.6 | 43,207 |
| Ken Strange (R) | 48.4 | 40,531 | ||
| Total votes: 83,738 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Democratic primary runoff election
Democratic primary runoff for Texas House of Representatives District 45
Erin Zwiener defeated Rebecca Bell-Metereau in the Democratic primary runoff for Texas House of Representatives District 45 on May 22, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Erin Zwiener | 51.4 | 3,003 |
 | Rebecca Bell-Metereau | 48.6 | 2,837 | |
| Total votes: 5,840 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Texas House of Representatives District 45
Rebecca Bell-Metereau and Erin Zwiener advanced to a runoff. They defeated Les Carnes in the Democratic primary for Texas House of Representatives District 45 on March 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Rebecca Bell-Metereau | 45.4 | 5,133 |
| ✔ | | Erin Zwiener | 30.7 | 3,466 |
| Les Carnes | 23.9 | 2,705 | ||
| Total votes: 11,304 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Republican primary election
Republican primary for Texas House of Representatives District 45
Ken Strange defeated Amber Pearce, Naomi Narvaiz, Austin Talley, and Amy Akers in the Republican primary for Texas House of Representatives District 45 on March 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Ken Strange | 54.7 | 7,257 | |
 | Amber Pearce | 24.4 | 3,233 | |
 | Naomi Narvaiz | 9.2 | 1,217 | |
| Austin Talley | 6.8 | 901 | |
 | Amy Akers | 4.9 | 651 | |
| Total votes: 13,259 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Campaign themes
2026
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Erin Zwiener has not yet completed Ballotpedia's 2026 Candidate Connection survey. Send a message to Erin Zwiener asking her to fill out the survey. If you are Erin Zwiener, click here to fill out Ballotpedia's 2026 Candidate Connection survey.
Who fills out Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey?
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You can ask Erin Zwiener to fill out this survey by using the buttons below or emailing info@erinforyall.com.
2024
Erin Zwiener did not complete Ballotpedia's 2024 Candidate Connection survey.
2022
Erin Zwiener completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Zwiener's responses.
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Rep. Zwiener serves on the House Committees on Public Health, House Administration, and Appropriations, where she is the Vice Chair of the Subcommittee on Article III (Education). She is a member of the House Democratic Caucus, LGBTQ Caucus, Criminal Justice Reform Caucus, Women’s Health Caucus, and IT Caucus. In January of 2021, Rep. Zwiener established the Caucus on Climate, Environment, and the Energy Industry and currently serves as its Chair.
She holds a Bachelor of Science in Natural Resource Conservation, a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing, and is a three-time Jeopardy! champion. She lives in Driftwood with her husband Quincy, daughter Lark, a dog, three horses, a mule, a pony, a pig, and too many chickens.
- Restore state funding for public education so that all our kids get a great education without overrelying on property taxes.
- Expand Medicaid to provide health care for another 1.5 million Texans and drive down costs for everyone.
- Protect clean air and water and fight climate change so our children can enjoy our beautiful Texas home.
Better Democracy: Voting rights, fair redistricting, and campaign finance reform will all make participating in our democratic process more accessible and fairer for everyone.
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
2020
Erin Zwiener did not complete Ballotpedia's 2020 Candidate Connection survey.
2018
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Erin Zwiener completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Zwiener's responses.
What would be your top three priorities, if elected?
Restore state funding for public education so that all our kids get a great education without driving up property taxes. Expand Medicaid to provide health care for another 1.5 million Texans and drive down costs for everyone. Protect our rivers, streams, and groundwater from overuse and habitat degradation.
What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?
Environmental: I'm a lifelong environmentalist with a degree in Natural Resource Conservation. I love designing smart policy that makes it easier for businesses and individual to do the right thing and take care of our natural world. Better Democracy: Voting rights, fair redistricting, and campaign finance reform will all make participating in our democratic process more accessible and fair for everyone.
What process do you favor for redistricting?
Both political parties have been guilty of partisan gerrymandering. Gerrymandered districts discourage voter participation and weaken the power of individual votes. I'll fight for an independent redistricting commission, so that voters will choose their elected representatives instead of the other way around.
If you are not a current legislator, are there certain committees that you would want to be a part of?
Elections, Natural Resources, Environmental Regulation, and State Affairs all interest me.
Are you interested in running for a different political office (for example, the U.S. Congress or governor) in the future?
I'm running for the office I want. I don't know what the future holds, but my ambitions are Texas-sized. I have no interest in going to Washington, D.C.
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
Scorecards
A scorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.
Ballotpedia is in the process of developing an encyclopedic list of published scorecards. Some states have a limited number of available scorecards or scorecards produced only by select groups. It is Ballotpedia’s goal to incorporate all available scorecards regardless of ideology or number.
Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states. To contribute to the list of scorecards, email suggestions to editor@ballotpedia.org.
In 2024, the Texas State Legislature was either not in session or no scorecards were found. Please contact us if you would like to suggest a scorecard.
Below you can find the scorecards found for the Texas State Legislature in 2023.
- Sierra Club Texas — Legislators are scored on their votes on environmental issues.
- Texans for Fiscal Responsibility — Legislators are scored based by the organization on their votes on bills relating to "core budget and free enterprise issues."
- Texans Uniting for Reform & Freedom — Legislators are scored based on their votes on bills relating to taxes and property rights.
- Texas Right to Life — Legislators are scored on bills related to reproductive health issues.
- Texas Values Action — Legislators are scored on their votes on social issues.
- The American Conservative Union — Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.
- The Institute for Legislative Analysis — Legislators are scored on their adherence to the limited government principles of the U.S. Constitution.
In 2022, the Texas State Legislature was either not in session or no scorecards were found. Please contact us if you would like to suggest a scorecard.
Below you can find the scorecards found for the Texas State Legislature in 2021.
- Club for Growth Foundation — Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to economic issues.
- National Federation of Independent Business — Legislators are scored on their votes on small business issues.
- Sierra Club Texas — Legislators are scored on their votes on environmental issues.
- Texans for Fiscal Responsibility — Legislators are scored based by the organization on their votes on bills relating to "core budget and free enterprise issues."
- Texans Uniting for Reform & Freedom — Legislators are scored based on their votes on bills relating to taxes and property rights.
- Texas Right to Life — Legislators are scored on bills related to reproductive health issues.
- Texas Values Action — Legislators are scored on their votes on social issues.
- The American Conservative Union — Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.
In 2020, the Texas State Legislature was either not in session or no scorecards were found. Please contact us if you would like to suggest a scorecard.
Below you can find the scorecards found for the Texas State Legislature in 2019.
- Club for Growth Foundation — Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to economic issues.
- Environment Texas — Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to environmental and public health issues.
- Texans for Fiscal Responsibility — Legislators are scored based by the organization on their votes on bills relating to "core budget and free enterprise issues."
- Texans Uniting for Reform & Freedom — Legislators are scored based on their votes on bills relating to taxes and property rights.
- Texas Eagle Forum — Legislators are scored based on votes relating to conservative issues.
- Texas Right to Life — Legislators are scored on bills related to reproductive health issues.
- Texas Values Action — Legislators are scored on their votes on social issues.
- The American Conservative Union — Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.
See also
2026 Elections
External links
|
Candidate Texas House of Representatives District 45 |
Officeholder Texas House of Representatives District 45 |
Personal |
Footnotes
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Jason Isaac (R) |
Texas House of Representatives District 45 2019-Present |
Succeeded by - |
