Texas' 31st Congressional District election, 2026 (March 3 Republican primary)
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| Texas' 31st Congressional District |
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| 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. |
| Race ratings |
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 |
U.S. Senate • 1st • 2nd • 3rd • 4th • 5th • 6th • 7th • 8th • 9th • 10th • 11th • 12th • 13th • 14th • 15th • 16th • 17th • 18th • 19th • 20th • 21st • 22nd • 23rd • 24th • 25th • 26th • 27th • 28th • 29th • 30th • 31st • 32nd • 33rd • 34th • 35th • 36th • 37th • 38th 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' 31st 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 |
|---|---|---|
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. State law requires voters to sign the following pledge before voting in a primary: "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."[1]
For information about which offices are nominated via primary election, see this article.
This page focuses on Texas' 31st Congressional District Republican primary. For more in-depth information on the district's Democratic primary and the general election, see the following pages:
- Texas' 31st Congressional District election, 2026 (March 3 Democratic primary)
- Texas' 31st Congressional District election, 2026
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 31
The following candidates are running in the Republican primary for U.S. House Texas District 31 on March 3, 2026.
Candidate | ||
 | John Carter | |
 | William Abel | |
| David Berry (Texas) | ||
 | Steven Dowell  | |
 | Abhiram Garapati | |
 | Valentina Gomez Noriega | |
 | Raymond Hamden | |
 | Jack McConnell | |
 | Mike Williams | |
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| = 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. | ||||
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.
Party: Republican Party
Incumbent: No
Political Office: None
Submitted Biography: "My name is Steve Dowell. I am a 35-year-old veteran, a Christian, a conservative before I am a Republican, a patented inventor, a businessman, a former police officer, a Major in the U.S. Army Reserve, and a 5th generation Central Texan from a family with a 118-year farming heritage in our district. My first and last words to our current sitting congressman, are, “thank you for your service, sir.” Our district now includes the entirety of the Fort Hood military community (our nation’s second largest military base which represents a quarter of all firepower in the U.S. Army) and we have never had a veteran represent our district in D.C. since its creation over 22 years ago. I have spent my life serving soldiers, their families, planning and training for war with China, Russia, North Korea, and Iran. I was in charge of Amazon’s Prime Day, Black Friday/Cyber Monday, and Christmas morning’s multi-billion dollar deal inventory for North America for two years. I invented a storage container intended for humanitarian assistance and disaster relief. I am the only candidate with over a year of experience working in D.C. And finally, during my military service I have officially represented the U.S. overseas in 17 different countries in both Europe and Asia--often times as the highest ranking soldier. My message for all of us: Let's not send someone to D.C. who is not ready to represent us on the world stage. I am ready, proven, and am already working for you. Send me."
Party: Republican Party
Incumbent: No
Political Office: None
Submitted Biography: "I immigrated legally to the United States in 1997 at the age of 22 with just $500. Through hard work, perseverance, and the grace of God, I became a self-made millionaire by 30. I have founded and led multiple successful businesses, including Ant Savings, a commercial real estate investment firm headquartered in Central Texas with retail properties across multiple states. I proudly affirmed my allegiance to the United States and became a U.S. citizen in 2010. I hold a bachelor’s degree in Electronics and Communications Engineering and completed advanced investment coursework at Stanford University. My career has taken me across the U.S., building relationships and doing business with Americans from all walks of life. In addition to business, I am a dedicated farmer and rancher, raising hay and livestock on my 200-acre ranch in Central Texas. I have represented Texas’s 31st Congressional District as a delegate to the 2024 Republican National Convention and served as a delegate to the Texas GOP Convention in 2020. The deep love I have for this country has fortunately been returned to me many times throughout my life, which is why I have pledged to self-fund my campaign, refuse all contributions, decline a congressional salary and pension, maintain full transparency of my finances, and refrain from owning individual stocks or trading while in Congress. Beyond work and public service, I enjoy volleyball, traveling, and cherishing time with my wife and our two children."
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| John Carter | Republican Party | $631,635 | $254,526 | $418,548 | As of September 30, 2025 |
| William Abel | Republican Party | $0 | $0 | $0 | Data not available*** |
| David Berry (Texas) | Republican Party | $0 | $0 | $0 | Data not available*** |
| Steven Dowell | Republican Party | $14,744 | $4,669 | $10,075 | As of September 30, 2025 |
| Abhiram Garapati | Republican Party | $0 | $0 | $0 | Data not available*** |
| Valentina Gomez Noriega | Republican Party | $27,757 | $9,451 | $12,406 | As of September 30, 2025 |
| Raymond Hamden | Republican Party | $128,296 | $7,250 | $120,696 | As of September 30, 2025 |
| Jack McConnell | Republican Party | $0 | $0 | $0 | Data not available*** |
| Mike Williams | Republican Party | $0 | $0 | $68,408 | As of September 30, 2025 |
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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." |
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District analysis
This section will contain facts and figures related to this district's elections when those are available.
Ballot access
The table below details filing requirements for U.S. House candidates in Texas in the 2026 election cycle. For additional information on candidate ballot access requirements in Texas, click here.
| Filing requirements for U.S. House candidates, 2026 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| State | Office | Party | Signatures required | Filing fee | Filing deadline | Source |
| Texas | U.S. House | Democratic or Republican | 2% of votes cast for governor in the district in the last election, or 500, whichever is less | $3,125 | 12/8/2025 | Source |
| Texas | U.S. House | Unaffiliated | 5% of all votes cast for governor in the district in the last election, or 500, whichever is less | N/A | 2/13/2026 | Source |
See also
- Texas' 31st Congressional District election, 2026 (March 3 Democratic primary)
- Texas' 31st Congressional District election, 2026
- United States House elections in Texas, 2026 (March 3 Democratic primaries)
- United States House elections in Texas, 2026 (March 3 Republican primaries)
- United States House Democratic Party primaries, 2026
- United States House Republican Party primaries, 2026
- United States House of Representatives elections, 2026
- U.S. House battlegrounds, 2026
External links
Footnotes
