Texas First District Court of Appeals

• Page navigation
• Judges
• Judicial selection
• Elections
• Ethics
• State profile

• See also

The Texas First Court of Appeals is one of 15 intermediate appellate courts in Texas. The First Court sits in the Houston, Texas, area and covers 10 counties. There are nine justices the court.

Published opinions of the First District Court of Appeals can be found here.

 

Texas First District Court of Appeals
Court information
Judges:	9
Salary:	Associates: $192,500
Judicial selection
Method:	Partisan election of judges
Term:	6 years

Judges

Judge	Tenure	Appointed By
Terry Adams	January 1, 2023 - Present
David Gunn	September 3, 2024 - Present	Greg Abbott
Veronica Rivas-Molloy	January 1, 2021 - Present
Kristin Guiney	January 1, 2025 - Present
Clint Morgan	January 1, 2025 - Present
Andrew Johnson	January 1, 2025 - Present
Amparo Guerra	January 1, 2021 - Present
Jennifer Caughey	January 1, 2025 - Present
Susanna Dokupil	January 1, 2025 - Present

Salary

See also: Texas court salaries and budgets

In 2025, associate judges serving on the Texas District Courts of Appeals in districts 1 through 14 received a base salary of $192,500, according to the Office of Court Administration. Judges on the Fifteenth District Court of Appeals earned a base salary of $205,000.

Jurisdiction

The First District Court of Appeals hears cases from the following 10 counties:

• Austin
• Brazoria
• Chambers
• Colorado
• Fort Bend

• Galveston
• Grimes
• Harris
• Waller
• Washington

Judicial selection

See also: Partisan election of judges and Judicial selection in Texas

The justices of the Texas Court of Appeals are selected in district level partisan elections. The elected justices serve six-year terms, after which they must run for re-election if they wish to remain on the court.

Qualifications

To serve on the Texas Court of Appeals, a justice must be:

• a U.S. citizen;
• a resident of Texas;
• licensed to practice law in the state;
• between the ages of 35 and 75;* and
• a practicing lawyer and/or judge for at least 10 years.

Chief justice

The chief justice of each district court is selected by voters at large. He or she serves in that capacity for a full six-year term.

Vacancies

In the event of a midterm vacancy, the governor appoints a replacement who must be confirmed by the Texas Senate. The appointee serves until the next general election, in which he or she may compete to serve for the remainder of the unexpired term.

Elections

• 2030
• 2028
• 2026
• 2024
• 2022
• 2020
• 2018

See also: Texas intermediate appellate court elections, 2030

Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 2

There are no official candidates yet for this election.

Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 6

There are no official candidates yet for this election.

Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 7

There are no official candidates yet for this election.

Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 8

There are no official candidates yet for this election.

Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 9

There are no official candidates yet for this election.

Texas First District Court of Appeals Chief Justice

See also: Texas intermediate appellate court elections, 2028

There are no official candidates yet for this election.

See also: Texas intermediate appellate court elections, 2026

Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 3

General election

The primary will occur on March 3, 2026. The general election will occur on November 3, 2026. General election candidates will be added here following the primary.

Democratic primary

Democratic primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 3

Incumbent Veronica Rivas-Molloy (D) is running in the Democratic primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 3 on March 3, 2026.

		Candidate
	Submit photo	Veronica Rivas-Molloy

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined.
= 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

Republican primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 3

Todd Frankfort (R), Zachary Gibson (R), Elizabeth Ling Urrego (R), and Malcolm Whittaker (R) are running in the Republican primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 3 on March 3, 2026.

		Candidate
	Submit photo	Todd Frankfort
		Zachary Gibson
		Elizabeth Ling Urrego
	Submit photo	Malcolm Whittaker

---

	There are no incumbents in this race.
= 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.

Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 4

General election

The primary will occur 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.

Special Democratic primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 4

Julie Countiss (D) is running in the special Democratic primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 4 on March 3, 2026.

		Candidate
		Julie Countiss

---

	There are no incumbents in this race.
= 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

The candidate list in this election may not be complete.

Special Republican primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 4

Incumbent David Gunn (R) is running in the special Republican primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 4 on March 3, 2026.

		Candidate
		David Gunn

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined.
= 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.

Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 5

General election

The primary will occur on March 3, 2026. The general election will occur on November 3, 2026. General election candidates will be added here following the primary.

Democratic primary

Democratic primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 5

Incumbent Amparo Guerra (D) is running in the Democratic primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 5 on March 3, 2026.

		Candidate
		Amparo Guerra

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined.
= 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

Republican primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 5

Jessica Caird (R) is running in the Republican primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 5 on March 3, 2026.

		Candidate
	Submit photo	Jessica Caird

---

	There are no incumbents in this race.
= 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.

See also: Texas intermediate appellate court elections, 2024

Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 2

General election

General election for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 2

Jennifer Caughey (R) defeated Brendetta Scott (D) in the general election for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 2 on November 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Jennifer Caughey (R)	53.3	1,196,245
		Brendetta Scott (D)	46.7	1,049,099

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 2,245,344
= 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

Democratic primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 2

Brendetta Scott (D) defeated incumbent Gordon Goodman (D) in the Democratic primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 2 on March 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Brendetta Scott	67.8	143,640
		Gordon Goodman	32.2	68,351

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 211,991
= 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

Republican primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 2

Jennifer Caughey (R) advanced from the Republican primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 2 on March 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Jennifer Caughey	100.0	271,930

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 271,930
= 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.

Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 6

General election

General election for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 6

Andrew Johnson (R) defeated incumbent Sarah Beth Landau (D) in the general election for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 6 on November 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Andrew Johnson (R)	52.8	1,182,592
		Sarah Beth Landau (D)	47.2	1,055,265

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 2,237,857
= 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

Democratic primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 6

Incumbent Sarah Beth Landau (D) advanced from the Democratic primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 6 on March 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Sarah Beth Landau	100.0	192,530

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 192,530
= 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

Republican primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 6

Andrew Johnson (R) advanced from the Republican primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 6 on March 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Andrew Johnson	100.0	270,360

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 270,360
= 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.

Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 7

General election

General election for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 7

Clint Morgan (R) defeated incumbent Julie Countiss (D) in the general election for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 7 on November 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Clint Morgan (R)	52.5	1,173,652
		Julie Countiss (D)	47.5	1,061,387

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 2,235,039
= 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

Democratic primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 7

Incumbent Julie Countiss (D) advanced from the Democratic primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 7 on March 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Julie Countiss	100.0	191,789

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 191,789
= 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

Republican primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 7

Clint Morgan (R) advanced from the Republican primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 7 on March 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Clint Morgan	100.0	268,991

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 268,991
= 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.

Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 8

General election

General election for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 8

Kristin Guiney (R) defeated incumbent Richard Hightower (D) in the general election for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 8 on November 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Submit photo	Kristin Guiney (R)	52.8	1,179,946
		Richard Hightower (D)	47.2	1,053,629

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 2,233,575
= 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

Democratic primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 8

Incumbent Richard Hightower (D) defeated Ysidra Kyles (D) in the Democratic primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 8 on March 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Richard Hightower	58.0	122,239
	Submit photo	Ysidra Kyles	42.0	88,639

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 210,878
= 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

Republican primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 8

Kristin Guiney (R) advanced from the Republican primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 8 on March 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Submit photo	Kristin Guiney	100.0	267,585

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 267,585
= 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.

Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 9

General election

General election for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 9

Susanna Dokupil (R) defeated Amber Boyd-Cora (D) in the general election for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 9 on November 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Susanna Dokupil (R)	52.8	1,174,793
		Amber Boyd-Cora (D)	47.2	1,051,737

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 2,226,530
= 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

Democratic primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 9

Amber Boyd-Cora (D) defeated incumbent Peter M. Kelly (D) in the Democratic primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 9 on March 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Amber Boyd-Cora	59.9	122,863
		Peter M. Kelly	40.1	82,230

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 205,093
= 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

Republican primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 9

Susanna Dokupil (R) advanced from the Republican primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 9 on March 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Susanna Dokupil	100.0	264,928

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 264,928
= 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.

See also: Texas intermediate appellate court elections, 2022

Texas First District Court of Appeals Chief Justice

General election

General election for Texas First District Court of Appeals Chief Justice

Terry Adams (R) defeated incumbent Julie Countiss (D) and Theodore Wood (Independent) in the general election for Texas First District Court of Appeals Chief Justice on November 8, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Submit photo	Terry Adams (R)	50.8	820,060
		Julie Countiss (D)	46.8	756,501
	Submit photo	Theodore Wood (Independent)	2.4	38,560

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 1,615,121
= 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

Democratic primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Chief Justice

Incumbent Julie Countiss (D) advanced from the Democratic primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Chief Justice on March 1, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Julie Countiss	100.0	199,571

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 199,571
= 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

Republican primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Chief Justice

Terry Adams (R) advanced from the Republican primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Chief Justice on March 1, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Submit photo	Terry Adams	100.0	254,690

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 254,690
= 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.

Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 4

General election

General election for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 4

Incumbent April Farris (R) defeated Mike Engelhart (D) in the general election for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 4 on November 8, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Submit photo	April Farris (R)	52.2	841,506
		Mike Engelhart (D)	47.8	770,499

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 1,612,005
= 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

Democratic primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 4

Mike Engelhart (D) advanced from the Democratic primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 4 on March 1, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Mike Engelhart	100.0	198,575

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 198,575
= 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

Republican primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 4

Incumbent April Farris (R) advanced from the Republican primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 4 on March 1, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Submit photo	April Farris	100.0	252,325

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 252,325
= 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.

See also: Texas intermediate appellate court elections, 2020

Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 3

General election

General election for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 3

Veronica Rivas-Molloy (D) defeated incumbent Russell Lloyd (R) in the general election for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 3 on November 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Submit photo	Veronica Rivas-Molloy (D)	50.8	1,171,700
	Submit photo	Russell Lloyd (R)	49.2	1,136,786

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 2,308,486
= 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

Democratic primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 3

Veronica Rivas-Molloy (D) defeated Dinesh Singhal (D) and Jim Sharp (D) in the Democratic primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 3 on March 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Submit photo	Veronica Rivas-Molloy	51.5	184,232
		Dinesh Singhal	28.2	100,888
		Jim Sharp	20.4	72,911

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 358,031
= 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

• Keith Houston (D)

Republican primary

Republican primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 3

Incumbent Russell Lloyd (R) advanced from the Republican primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 3 on March 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Submit photo	Russell Lloyd	100.0	281,836

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 281,836
= 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.

Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 5

General election

General election for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 5

Amparo Guerra (D) defeated incumbent Terry Adams (R) in the general election for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 5 on November 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Amparo Guerra (D)	50.1	1,155,448
	Submit photo	Terry Adams (R)	49.9	1,150,910

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 2,306,358
= 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

Republican primary runoff for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 5

Incumbent Terry Adams (R) defeated James Lombardino (R) in the Republican primary runoff for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 5 on July 14, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Submit photo	Terry Adams	69.2	89,844
	Submit photo	James Lombardino	30.8	40,064

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 129,908
= 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

Democratic primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 5

Amparo Guerra (D) defeated Timothy Hootman (D) in the Democratic primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 5 on March 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Amparo Guerra	67.8	235,483
	Submit photo	Timothy Hootman	32.2	112,072

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 347,555
= 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

Republican primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 5

Incumbent Terry Adams (R) and James Lombardino (R) advanced to a runoff. They defeated Chad Bridges (R) and Levi J. Benton (R) in the Republican primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 5 on March 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Submit photo	Terry Adams	32.5	91,384
✔	Submit photo	James Lombardino	28.5	80,158
		Chad Bridges	25.4	71,372
	Submit photo	Levi J. Benton	13.7	38,472

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 281,386
= 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.

Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 2

General election

General election for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 2

Gordon Goodman (D) defeated incumbent Jane Bland (R) in the general election for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 2 on November 6, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Gordon Goodman (D)	50.9	881,091
		Jane Bland (R)	49.1	849,077

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 1,730,1680
= 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

Democratic primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 2

Gordon Goodman (D) advanced from the Democratic primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 2 on March 6, 2018.

		Candidate
✔		Gordon Goodman

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified.
= 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

Republican primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 2

Incumbent Jane Bland (R) advanced from the Republican primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 2 on March 6, 2018.

		Candidate
✔		Jane Bland

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified.
= 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.

Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 6

General election

General election for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 6

Sarah Beth Landau (D) defeated incumbent Harvey Brown (R) in the general election for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 6 on November 6, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Sarah Beth Landau (D)	51.8	895,562
		Harvey Brown (R)	48.2	834,062

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 1,729,6240
= 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

Democratic primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 6

Sarah Beth Landau (D) advanced from the Democratic primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 6 on March 6, 2018.

		Candidate
✔		Sarah Beth Landau

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified.
= 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

Republican primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 6

Incumbent Harvey Brown (R) advanced from the Republican primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 6 on March 6, 2018.

		Candidate
✔		Harvey Brown

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified.
= 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.

Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 7

General election

General election for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 7

Julie Countiss (D) defeated Terry Yates (R) in the general election for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 7 on November 6, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Julie Countiss (D)	52.4	906,180
		Terry Yates (R)	47.6	823,106

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 1,729,2860
= 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

Democratic primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 7

Julie Countiss (D) advanced from the Democratic primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 7 on March 6, 2018.

		Candidate
✔		Julie Countiss

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified.
= 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

Republican primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 7

Terry Yates (R) defeated Katy Boatman (R) in the Republican primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 7 on March 6, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Terry Yates	53.9	119,865
		Katy Boatman	46.1	102,553

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified.	Total votes: 222,418
= 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.

Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 8

General election

General election for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 8

Richard Hightower (D) defeated incumbent Michael Massengale (R) in the general election for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 8 on November 6, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Richard Hightower (D)	52.6	909,756
		Michael Massengale (R)	47.4	818,931

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 1,728,6870
= 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

Democratic primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 8

Richard Hightower (D) advanced from the Democratic primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 8 on March 6, 2018.

		Candidate
✔		Richard Hightower

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified.
= 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

Republican primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 8

Incumbent Michael Massengale (R) advanced from the Republican primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 8 on March 6, 2018.

		Candidate
✔		Michael Massengale

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified.
= 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.

Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 9

General election

General election for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 9

Peter M. Kelly (D) defeated incumbent Jennifer Caughey (R) in the general election for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 9 on November 6, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Peter M. Kelly (D)	51.8	894,209
		Jennifer Caughey (R)	48.2	833,319

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 1,727,5280
= 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

Democratic primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 9

Peter M. Kelly (D) advanced from the Democratic primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 9 on March 6, 2018.

		Candidate
✔		Peter M. Kelly

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified.
= 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

Republican primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 9

Incumbent Jennifer Caughey (R) advanced from the Republican primary for Texas First District Court of Appeals Place 9 on March 6, 2018.

		Candidate
✔		Jennifer Caughey

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified.
= 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.

Previous election results

2016

Main article: Texas judicial elections, 2016

Candidates

Chief justice

■ Jim Peacock (D)
■ Sherry Radack (R) (Incumbent)

Place 4

■ Barbara Gardner (D)
■ Evelyn Keyes (R) (Incumbent)

Election results

November 8 general election

Incumbent Sherry Radack defeated Jim Peacock in the general election for the Texas First District Court of Appeals, Chief Justice.

Texas First District Court of Appeals, Chief Justice, 2016
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Sherry Radack Incumbent	52.09%	963,538
	Democratic	Jim Peacock	47.91%	886,049
Total Votes (100% reporting)				1,849,587
Source: Texas Secretary of State Official Results

Incumbent Evelyn Keyes defeated Barbara Gardner in the general election for the Texas First District Court of Appeals, Place 4.

Texas First District Court of Appeals, Place 4, 2016
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Evelyn Keyes Incumbent	51.05%	942,286
	Democratic	Barbara Gardner	48.95%	903,610
Total Votes (100% reporting)				1,845,896
Source: Texas Secretary of State Official Results

March 1 primary election

Texas First District Court of Appeals, Democratic Primary, 2016
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Barbara Gardner  (unopposed)	100.00%	207,252
Total Votes (100% Reporting)				207,252
Source: Texas Secretary of State Official Results

Texas First District Court of Appeals, Republican Primary, 2016
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Evelyn Keyes Incumbent (unopposed)	100.00%	330,259
Total Votes (100% Reporting)				330,259
Source: Texas Secretary of State Official Results

2014

Place 3

Candidate	Incumbency	Party	Primary Vote	Election Vote
BridgesChad Bridges	No	Republican	21.7%
SharpJim Sharp	Yes	Democratic	100%A	42.9%   D
LinebaughDan Linebaugh	No	Republican	27.9%
LloydRussell LloydA	No	Republican	50.1%A	57.1%   A

Unopposed	Judge Laura Higley (Place 5)

2012

Candidate	Incumbency	Party	Place	Primary Vote	Election Vote
GardnerBarbara Gardner	No	Democratic	Place 4	100%A	47.7%   A
SilvermanChuck Silverman	No	Democratic	Place 6	100%A	46.6%   A
BrownHarvey Brown   A	Yes	Republican	Place 6	100%A	53.4%   A
BlandJane Bland   A	Yes	Republican	Place 2	100%A	53.3%   A
ChengKathy Cheng	No	Democratic	Place 6	100%A	46.6%   A
MassengaleMichael Massengale   A	Yes	Republican	Place 8	100%A	53.8%   A
OakesNatalia Cokinos Oakes	No	Democratic		100%A	46.5%   A
Nile Copeland
HuddleRebecca Huddle   A	Yes	Republican	Place 9	100%A	53.4%   A
JenningsTerry Jennings   A	Yes	Democratic	Place 7	100%A	53.6%   A

2010

Appellate Court, Place	Candidates	Details	Results
First District, Place 4	(R): Evelyn Keyes and Don Self (D): Michael Gomez	Evelyn Keyes and Michael Gomez competed in the general election.	Evelyn Keyes won with 59.2% of the vote.
First District, Place 8	(R): Michael Massengale and Gael Harrison (D): Robert Ray	Michael Massengale and Robert Ray competed in the general election.	Michael Massengale won with 58.3% of the vote.

Ethics

The Texas Code of Judicial Conduct sets forth ethical guidelines and principles for the conduct of judges and judicial candidates in Texas. It consists of eight overarching canons:

• Canon 1: Upholding the Integrity and Independence of the Judiciary
• Canon 2: Avoiding Impropriety and the Appearance of Impropriety in All of the Judge’s Activities
• Canon 3: Performing the Duties of Judicial Office Impartially and Diligently
• Canon 4: Conducting the Judge's Extra-Judicial Activities to Minimize the Risk of Conflict with Judicial Obligations
• Canon 5: Refraining from Inappropriate Political Activity
• Canon 6: Compliance with the Code of Judicial Conduct
• Canon 7: Effective Date of Compliance
• Canon 8: Construction and Terminology of the Code

The full text of the Texas Code of Judicial Conduct can be found here.

Removal of judges

Court of Appeals judges in Texas may be removed in one of three ways:

• Removal or retirement by a review tribunal upon a Texas Commission on Judicial Conduct recommendation to the Supreme Court. The Commission investigates and, if warranted, prosecutes allegations of judicial misconduct. After a Commission recommendation, the Supreme Court selects a review tribunal made up of Court of Appeals judges to verify the Commission's findings and enter a judgment. Decisions are subject to appeal to the Supreme Court.
• By the governor on the address of two thirds of the Texas Senate and the Texas House of Representatives.
• By a two-thirds vote of the Senate, upon impeachment by a majority vote of the House.

History

Below are some key highlights in the court's history:

• Texas appeals courts (originally Courts of Civil Appeals) were established by amendment to the Texas Constitution in 1891.

• The Texas Legislature authorized courts of civil appeals to issue writs of mandamus and all other writs necessary to enforce their jurisdiction in 1892.

• In 1892, the legislature created the 1st, 2nd and 3rd District courts, located in Galveston, Fort Worth and Austin, respectively.

• The First Court of Appeals opened its first term in Galveston on Monday, October 3, 1892.

• The First District Court was moved from Galveston to Houston during its first year (1892).

• The appeals courts were originally created as the Courts of Civil Appeals and had jurisdiction in civil cases only. In 1981 the courts gained criminal jurisdiction.

• A constitutional amendment passed in 1985 formally changed the courts' name from the Courts of Civil Appeals to the Courts of Appeals to reflect the broader jurisdiction.

• Christopher Columbus Garrett became the first chief justice of the First District Court of Appeals in 1982 and served until 1905.

• In 1899, Associate Justice Frank A. Williams became the first judge of the First Court of Appeals to serve on the Texas Supreme Court.

State profile

Demographic data for Texas
	Texas	U.S.
Total population:	27,429,639	316,515,021
Land area (sq mi):	261,232	3,531,905
Race and ethnicity**
White:	74.9%	73.6%
Black/African American:	11.9%	12.6%
Asian:	4.2%	5.1%
Native American:	0.5%	0.8%
Pacific Islander:	0.1%	0.2%
Two or more:	2.5%	3%
Hispanic/Latino:	38.4%	17.1%
Education
High school graduation rate:	81.9%	86.7%
College graduation rate:	27.6%	29.8%
Income
Median household income:	$53,207	$53,889
Persons below poverty level:	19.9%	11.3%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015) Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in Texas. **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.

Presidential voting pattern

See also: Presidential voting trends in Texas

Texas voted Republican in all seven presidential elections between 2000 and 2024.

Pivot Counties (2016)

Ballotpedia identified 206 counties that voted for Donald Trump (R) in 2016 after voting for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012. Collectively, Trump won these Pivot Counties by more than 580,000 votes. Of these 206 counties, one is located in Texas, accounting for 0.5 percent of the total pivot counties.

Pivot Counties (2020)

In 2020, Ballotpedia re-examined the 206 Pivot Counties to view their voting patterns following that year's presidential election. Ballotpedia defined those won by Trump won as Retained Pivot Counties and those won by Joe Biden (D) as Boomerang Pivot Counties. Nationwide, there were 181 Retained Pivot Counties and 25 Boomerang Pivot Counties. Texas had one Retained Pivot County, 0.55 percent of all Retained Pivot Counties.

More Texas coverage on Ballotpedia

• Elections in Texas
• United States congressional delegations from Texas
• Public policy in Texas
• Endorsers in Texas
• Texas fact checks
• More...

External links

• Texas First Court of Appeals

Footnotes

Texas courts

---

Federal courts:

Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: Eastern District of Texas, Western District of Texas, Northern District of Texas, Southern District of Texas • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: Eastern District of Texas, Western District of Texas, Northern District of Texas, Southern District of Texas

State courts:

Texas Supreme Court • Texas Court of Appeals • Texas Court of Criminal Appeals • Texas District Courts • Texas County Courts • Texas County Courts at Law • Texas Statutory Probate Courts • Texas Justice of the Peace Courts

State resources:

Courts in Texas • Texas judicial elections • Judicial selection in Texas