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Texas' 12th Congressional District election, 2026 (March 3 Republican primary)

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2024
Texas' 12th Congressional District
Ballotpedia Election Coverage Badge.png
Democratic primary
Republican primary
General election
Election details
Filing deadline: December 8, 2025
Primary: March 3, 2026
Primary runoff: May 26, 2026
General: November 3, 2026
How to vote
Poll times:

7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Voting in Texas

Race ratings
Cook Political Report: Solid Republican
DDHQ and The Hill: Pending
Inside Elections: Solid Republican
Sabato's Crystal Ball: Safe Republican
Ballotpedia analysis
U.S. Senate battlegrounds
U.S. House battlegrounds
Federal and state primary competitiveness
Ballotpedia's Election Analysis Hub, 2026
See also
Texas' 12th Congressional District
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Texas elections, 2026
U.S. Congress elections, 2026
U.S. Senate elections, 2026
U.S. House elections, 2026

A Republican Party primary takes place on March 3, 2026, in Texas' 12th Congressional District to determine which Republican candidate will run in the district's general election on November 3, 2026.

Candidate filing deadline Primary election General election
December 8, 2025
March 3, 2026
November 3, 2026



A primary election is an election in which registered voters select a candidate that they believe should be a political party's candidate for elected office to run in the general election. They are also used to choose convention delegates and party leaders. Primaries are state-level and local-level elections that take place prior to a general election. Texas utilizes an open primary system. Voters do not have to register with a party in advance in order to participate in that party's primary. The voter must sign a pledge stating the following (the language below is taken directly from state statutes)[1]

The following pledge shall be placed on the primary election ballot above the listing of candidates' names: 'I am a (insert appropriate political party) and understand that I am ineligible to vote or participate in another political party's primary election or convention during this voting year.'[2]

For information about which offices are nominated via primary election, see this article.

This page focuses on Texas' 12th Congressional District Republican primary. For more in-depth information on the district's Democratic primary and the general election, see the following pages:

Candidates and election results

Note: The following list includes official candidates only. Ballotpedia defines official candidates as people who:

  • Register with a federal or state campaign finance agency before the candidate filing deadline
  • Appear on candidate lists released by government election agencies

Republican primary election

Republican primary for U.S. House Texas District 12

Incumbent Craig Goldman, Brian Sprague, and Semaj Swire are running in the Republican primary for U.S. House Texas District 12 on March 3, 2026.


Candidate Connection = 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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Candidate profiles

This section includes candidate profiles that may be created in one of two ways: either the candidate completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey, or Ballotpedia staff may compile a profile based on campaign websites, advertisements, and public statements after identifying the candidate as noteworthy. For more on how we select candidates to include, click here.

Image of Brian Sprague

WebsiteFacebookTwitterYouTube

Party: Republican Party

Incumbent: No

Political Office: None

Submitted Biography "Brian James Sprague is a U.S. Army combat veteran, entrepreneur, and lifelong Republican running for Congress in Texas’s 12th district. Born in Loveland, Colorado, and raised in Nebraska, Sprague enlisted in the Army Military Police in 2002. He served with the 127th MP Detachment at Fort Knox, the 55th MP Company in South Korea, and the 92nd MP Company in Germany, including a combat tour at FOB Kalsu in Iraq. He earned multiple medals, including the Combat Action Badge. After his military service, Sprague launched businesses in automotive repair, equine training, and media. He founded the Texas Music Chart, Texas Country Today Radio, and Texas Country Music News, building one of the largest independent music media networks in Texas. His podcast and radio show reach hundreds of stations nationwide. In 2025, Sprague launched his grassroots congressional campaign after what he describes as a spiritual calling. A devout Catholic and staunch conservative, he has never voted outside the Republican Party. His platform focuses on transparency, trade reform, and protecting the American middle class. He is running under the banner “BS4Texas” to bring integrity and accountability back to Congress."


Key Messages

To read this candidate's full survey responses, click here.


Washington isn’t broken—it’s bought. I’m running to end lobbyist influence in Congress once and for all. We must ban members from trading stocks, eliminate backroom deals, and force full transparency in campaign contributions, votes, and committee decisions. If elected, I’ll introduce legislation that shines a light on corruption and shuts the revolving door between Congress and K Street. The American people deserve a government that works for them, not the highest bidder. It's time to Make Congress Honest Again.


The middle class is vanishing under predatory banking and unchecked Wall Street greed. I’ll fight to reinstate strict regulation of big banks, repeal the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, and abolish the Federal Reserve. In its place, I propose a Hamilton National Reserve—a publicly accountable institution that protects the dollar, strengthens small banks, and ends speculative abuse. It's time to put working Americans before hedge funds and bring back stability for families, farmers, and small businesses.


America doesn’t have a revenue problem—we have a waste problem. Nowhere is that clearer than the military-industrial complex, where contractors are paid triple what enlisted soldiers earn to do the same jobs. I will audit military spending, slash overpriced contracts, and ensure taxpayer dollars go to defense—not grift. Cutting waste doesn’t mean cutting strength—it means putting our troops, not war profiteers, first. Let’s end abuse of our budget and restore accountability across all federal agencies.

Voting information

See also: Voting in Texas

Ballotpedia will publish the dates and deadlines related to this election as they are made available.

Campaign finance

Name Party Receipts* Disbursements** Cash on hand Date
Craig Goldman Republican Party $633,598 $295,842 $873,652 As of June 30, 2025
Brian Sprague Republican Party $0 $0 $0 Data not available***
Semaj Swire Republican Party $0 $0 $0 Data not available***

Source: Federal Elections Commission, "Campaign finance data," 2026. This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).

* According to the FEC, "Receipts are anything of value (money, goods, services or property) received by a political committee."
** According to the FEC, a disbursement "is a purchase, payment, distribution, loan, advance, deposit or gift of money or anything of value to influence a federal election," plus other kinds of payments not made to influence a federal election.
*** Candidate either did not report any receipts or disbursements to the FEC, or Ballotpedia did not find an FEC candidate ID.

District analysis

This section will contain facts and figures related to this district's elections when those are available.

Ballot access

This section will contain information on ballot access related to this state's elections when it is available.

See also

External links

Footnotes

  1. Texas Statutes, "Section 172.086," accessed October 7, 2024
  2. Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.


Senators
Representatives
District 1
District 2
District 3
District 4
District 5
District 6
District 7
District 8
District 9
Al Green (D)
District 10
District 11
District 12
District 13
District 14
District 15
District 16
District 17
District 18
Vacant
District 19
District 20
District 21
Chip Roy (R)
District 22
District 23
District 24
District 25
District 26
District 27
District 28
District 29
District 30
District 31
District 32
District 33
District 34
District 35
District 36
District 37
District 38
Republican Party (27)
Democratic Party (12)
Vacancies (1)