Texas Second District Court of Appeals

The Texas Second Court of Appeals is one of 15 intermediate appellate courts in Texas. It serves the Fort Worth area, including 12 counties. The court consists of seven justices.

Cases heard include all types of civil appeals and all types of criminal appeals, except where the death penalty has been imposed. Death penalty cases are appealed directly to the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals in Austin. The Court also has jurisdiction over original proceedings in its 12 counties, such as writs of mandamus, injunction, prohibition and habeas corpus.

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

 

Texas Second District Court of Appeals
Court information
Judges:	7
Salary:	Associates: $192,500
Judicial selection
Method:	Partisan election of judges
Term:	6 years

Jurisdiction

The Second District Court of Appeals has appellate jurisdiction over appeals arising from district and county courts in 12 counties:

• Archer
• Clay
• Cooke
• Denton
• Hood
• Jack
• Montague
• Parker
• Tarrant
• Wichita
• Wise
• Young

Judges

Judge	Tenure	Appointed By
Wade Birdwell	2017 - Present	Greg Abbott
Mike Wallach	September 3, 2019 - Present	Greg Abbott
Elizabeth Kerr	January 1, 2017 - Present
Bonnie Sudderth	2015 - Present	Rick Perry
Dabney Bassel	2019 - Present
Brian Walker	January 1, 2021 - Present
Dana Womack	2019 - Present	Greg Abbott

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.

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 Second District Court of Appeals Chief Justice

There are no official candidates yet for this election.

Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 4

There are no official candidates yet for this election.

Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 5

There are no official candidates yet for this election.

Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 6

There are no official candidates yet for this election.

Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 3

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 Second District Court of Appeals Place 2

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.

Republican primary

Republican primary for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 2

Chris Taylor (R) is running in the Republican primary for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 2 on March 3, 2026.

		Candidate
	Submit photo	Chris Taylor

---

	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 Second District Court of Appeals Place 7

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.

Republican primary

Republican primary for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 7

Incumbent Brian Walker (R) is running in the Republican primary for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 7 on March 3, 2026.

		Candidate
		Brian Walker

---

	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.

See also: Texas intermediate appellate court elections, 2024

Texas Second District Court of Appeals Chief Justice

General election

General election for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Chief Justice

Incumbent Bonnie Sudderth (R) won election in the general election for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Chief Justice on November 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Submit photo	Bonnie Sudderth (R)	100.0	1,066,822

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 1,066,822
= 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

The Democratic primary scheduled for March 5, 2024, was canceled.

Republican primary

Republican primary for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Chief Justice

Incumbent Bonnie Sudderth (R) advanced from the Republican primary for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Chief Justice on March 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Submit photo	Bonnie Sudderth	100.0	243,212

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 243,212
= 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 Second District Court of Appeals Place 4

General election

General election for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 4

Incumbent Wade Birdwell (R) won election in the general election for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 4 on November 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Submit photo	Wade Birdwell (R)	100.0	1,052,598

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 1,052,598
= 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

The Democratic primary scheduled for March 5, 2024, was canceled.

Republican primary

Republican primary for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 4

Incumbent Wade Birdwell (R) advanced from the Republican primary for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 4 on March 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Submit photo	Wade Birdwell	100.0	242,552

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 242,552
= 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 Second District Court of Appeals Place 5

General election

General election for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 5

Incumbent Dabney Bassel (R) won election in the general election for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 5 on November 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Dabney Bassel (R)	100.0	1,046,145

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 1,046,145
= 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

The Democratic primary scheduled for March 5, 2024, was canceled.

Republican primary

Republican primary for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 5

Incumbent Dabney Bassel (R) advanced from the Republican primary for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 5 on March 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Dabney Bassel	100.0	239,642

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 239,642
= 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 Second District Court of Appeals Place 6

General election

General election for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 6

Incumbent Mike Wallach (R) won election in the general election for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 6 on November 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Mike Wallach (R)	100.0	1,043,319

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 1,043,319
= 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

The Democratic primary scheduled for March 5, 2024, was canceled.

Republican primary

Republican primary for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 6

Incumbent Mike Wallach (R) advanced from the Republican primary for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 6 on March 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Mike Wallach	100.0	240,204

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 240,204
= 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 Second District Court of Appeals Place 3

See also: Texas intermediate appellate court elections, 2022

General election

General election for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 3

Incumbent Elizabeth Kerr (R) defeated Delonia Watson (D) in the general election for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 3 on November 8, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Elizabeth Kerr (R)	60.8	654,798
		Delonia Watson (D)	39.2	421,853

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 1,076,651
= 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 Second District Court of Appeals Place 3

Delonia Watson (D) advanced from the Democratic primary for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 3 on March 1, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Delonia Watson	100.0	94,747

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 94,747
= 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 Second District Court of Appeals Place 3

Incumbent Elizabeth Kerr (R) advanced from the Republican primary for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 3 on March 1, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Elizabeth Kerr	100.0	208,586

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 208,586
= 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 Second District Court of Appeals Place 2

General election

General election for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 2

Incumbent Dana Womack (R) won election in the general election for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 2 on November 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Submit photo	Dana Womack (R)	100.0	1,039,584

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 1,039,584
= 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

The Democratic primary scheduled for March 3, 2020, was canceled.

Republican primary

Republican primary for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 2

Incumbent Dana Womack (R) advanced from the Republican primary for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 2 on March 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Submit photo	Dana Womack	100.0	220,276

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 220,276
= 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 Second District Court of Appeals Place 6

General election

Special general election for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 6

Incumbent Mike Wallach (R) defeated Delonia Watson (D) in the special general election for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 6 on November 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Mike Wallach (R)	59.2	847,068
		Delonia Watson (D)	40.8	583,703

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 1,430,771
= 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

Special Democratic primary for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 6

Delonia Watson (D) advanced from the special Democratic primary for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 6 on March 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Delonia Watson	100.0	175,926

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 175,926
= 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

Special Republican primary for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 6

Incumbent Mike Wallach (R) advanced from the special Republican primary for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 6 on March 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Mike Wallach	100.0	219,442

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 219,442
= 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 Second District Court of Appeals Place 7

General election

General election for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 7

Brian Walker (R) won election in the general election for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 7 on November 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Brian Walker (R)	100.0	1,028,700

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 1,028,700
= 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 Second District Court of Appeals Place 7

Brian Walker (R) defeated Elizabeth Beach (R) in the Republican primary runoff for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 7 on July 14, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Brian Walker	64.1	48,622
		Elizabeth Beach	35.9	27,213

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 75,835
= 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

The Democratic primary scheduled for March 3, 2020, was canceled.

Republican primary

Republican primary for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 7

Brian Walker (R) and Elizabeth Beach (R) advanced to a runoff. They defeated John P. Chupp (R) in the Republican primary for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 7 on March 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Brian Walker	47.8	105,870
✔		Elizabeth Beach	36.1	80,027
	Submit photo	John P. Chupp	16.1	35,620

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 221,517
= 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 Second District Court of Appeals Chief Justice

General election

General election for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Chief Justice

Incumbent Bonnie Sudderth (R) won election in the general election for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Chief Justice on November 6, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Submit photo	Bonnie Sudderth (R)	100.0	703,525

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 703,5250
= 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 Second District Court of Appeals Chief Justice

Incumbent Bonnie Sudderth (R) advanced from the Republican primary for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Chief Justice on March 6, 2018.

		Candidate
✔	Submit photo	Bonnie Sudderth

---

	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 Second District Court of Appeals Place 4

General election

General election for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 4

Incumbent Wade Birdwell (R) won election in the general election for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 4 on November 6, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Submit photo	Wade Birdwell (R)	100.0	699,006

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 699,0060
= 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 Second District Court of Appeals Place 4

Incumbent Wade Birdwell (R) advanced from the Republican primary for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 4 on March 6, 2018.

		Candidate
✔	Submit photo	Wade Birdwell

---

	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 Second District Court of Appeals Place 5

General election

General election for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 5

Dabney Bassel (R) defeated Delonia Watson (D) in the general election for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 5 on November 6, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Dabney Bassel (R)	58.3	622,466
		Delonia Watson (D)	41.7	444,612

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 1,067,0780
= 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 Second District Court of Appeals Place 5

Delonia Watson (D) advanced from the Democratic primary for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 5 on March 6, 2018.

		Candidate
✔		Delonia Watson

---

	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 Second District Court of Appeals Place 5

Dabney Bassel (R) advanced from the Republican primary for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 5 on March 6, 2018.

		Candidate
✔		Dabney Bassel

---

	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.

Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 6

General election

General election for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 6

Incumbent Mark Pittman (R) won election in the general election for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 6 on November 6, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Mark Pittman (R)	100.0	696,832

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 696,8320
= 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 Second District Court of Appeals Place 6

Incumbent Mark Pittman (R) advanced from the Republican primary for Texas Second District Court of Appeals Place 6 on March 6, 2018.

		Candidate
✔		Mark Pittman

---

	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

Place 3

• Judge Anne Gardner (R) is retiring.

■ Elizabeth Kerr (R) (Unopposed)

Place 4

■ Bonnie Sudderth (R) (Incumbent/Unopposed)

Election results

November 8 general election

Elizabeth Kerr ran unopposed in the general election for the Texas Second District Court of Appeals, Place 3.

Texas Second District Court of Appeals, Place 3, 2016
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Elizabeth Kerr  (unopposed)	100.00%	792,185
Total Votes (100% reporting)				792,185
Source: Texas Secretary of State Official Results

Incumbent Bonnie Sudderth ran unopposed in the general election for the Texas Second District Court of Appeals, Place 4.

Texas Second District Court of Appeals, Place 4, 2016
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Bonnie Sudderth Incumbent (unopposed)	100.00%	783,742
Total Votes (100% reporting)				783,742
Source: Texas Secretary of State Official Results

May 24 runoff

Texas Second District Court of Appeals Republican Runoff, Seat 3, 2016
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Elizabeth Kerr	54.83%	25,628
	Republican	Dabney Bassel	45.17%	21,116
Total Votes (100% Reporting)				46,744
Source: Texas Secretary of State Official Results

March 1 primary election

Texas Second District Court of Appeals, Seat 3, Republican Primary, 2016
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Elizabeth Kerr	33.15%	89,272
	Republican	Dabney Bassel	18.83%	50,706
	Republican	Andy Porter	18.81%	50,656
	Republican	Bill Ray	17.28%	46,532
	Republican	Mary Johndroe	11.94%	32,158
Total Votes (100% Reporting)				269,324
Source: Texas Secretary of State Official Results

Texas Second District Court of Appeals, Seat 4, Republican Primary, 2016
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Bonnie Sudderth Incumbent (unopposed)	100.00%	255,830
Total Votes (100% Reporting)				255,830
Source: Texas Secretary of State Official Results

2014

Unopposed	Judge Bill Meier (Place 2)

Unopposed	Judge Lee Gabriel (Place 7)

2012

Candidate	Incumbency	Party	Place	Primary Vote	Election Vote
McCoyBob McCoy		Republican	Number 3
DauphinotLee Ann Dauphinot   A	Yes	Republican	Place 6	100%A	100%   A
WalkerSue Walker   A	Yes	Republican	Place 5	100%A	100%   A
LivingstonTerrie Livingston   A	Yes	Republican		100%A	100%   A

2010

Appellate Court, Place	Candidates	Details	Results
Second District, Place 3	(R): Anne Gardner	Anne Gardner was up for re-election.	Anne Gardner
Second District, Place 7	Lee Gabriel		Lee Gabriel

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 Second Court of Appeals opened its first term on October 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.

• The first chief justice of the 2nd Court of Appeals was Judge B. D. Tarlton of Hillsboro.

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 Second 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