Texas Supreme Court elections, 2026

2026 State Judicial Elections
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The terms of seven Texas Supreme Court and Texas Court of Criminal Appeals justices will expire on January 10, 2027. The seven seats are up for partisan election on November 3, 2026. The primary is March 3, 2026, and a primary runoff is May 26, 2026. The filing deadline was December 8, 2025.

Candidates and results

Texas Supreme Court

Place 1

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 election

Democratic primary for Texas Supreme Court Place 1 Chief Justice

Cory Carlyle and Maggie Ellis are running in the Democratic primary for Texas Supreme Court Place 1 Chief Justice on March 3, 2026.

		Candidate
		Cory Carlyle
		Maggie Ellis

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	There are no incumbents in this race.
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Texas Supreme Court Place 1 Chief Justice

Incumbent Jimmy Blacklock and Steve Smith are running in the Republican primary for Texas Supreme Court Place 1 Chief Justice on March 3, 2026.

		Candidate
		Jimmy Blacklock
	Submit photo	Steve Smith

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined.
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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.

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Texas Supreme Court Place 2

Chari Kelly is running in the Democratic primary for Texas Supreme Court Place 2 on March 3, 2026.

		Candidate
		Chari Kelly

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	There are no incumbents in this race.
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Texas Supreme Court Place 2

Incumbent James Sullivan is running in the Republican primary for Texas Supreme Court Place 2 on March 3, 2026.

		Candidate
		James Sullivan

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined.
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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.

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Texas Supreme Court Place 7

Gordon Goodman and Kristen Hawkins are running in the Democratic primary for Texas Supreme Court Place 7 on March 3, 2026.

		Candidate
		Gordon Goodman
		Kristen Hawkins

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	There are no incumbents in this race.
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Texas Supreme Court Place 7

Incumbent Kyle Hawkins is running in the Republican primary for Texas Supreme Court Place 7 on March 3, 2026.

		Candidate
	Submit photo	Kyle Hawkins

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined.
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Place 8

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 election

Democratic primary for Texas Supreme Court Place 8

Gisela Triana is running in the Democratic primary for Texas Supreme Court Place 8 on March 3, 2026.

		Candidate
		Gisela Triana

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	There are no incumbents in this race.
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Texas Supreme Court Place 8

Incumbent Brett Busby and David Rogers are running in the Republican primary for Texas Supreme Court Place 8 on March 3, 2026.

		Candidate
		Brett Busby
	Submit photo	David Rogers

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined.
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Texas Court of Criminal 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 election

Democratic primary for Texas Court of Criminal Appeals Place 3

Okey Anyiam is running in the Democratic primary for Texas Court of Criminal Appeals Place 3 on March 3, 2026.

		Candidate
	Submit photo	Okey Anyiam

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	There are no incumbents in this race.
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Texas Court of Criminal Appeals Place 3

Brent Coffee, Lesli Fitzpatrick, Alison Fox, and Thomas Smith are running in the Republican primary for Texas Court of Criminal Appeals Place 3 on March 3, 2026.

		Candidate
	Submit photo	Brent Coffee
		Lesli Fitzpatrick
	Submit photo	Alison Fox
	Submit photo	Thomas Smith

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	There are no incumbents in this race.
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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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.

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Texas Court of Criminal Appeals Place 4

Audra Riley is running in the Democratic primary for Texas Court of Criminal Appeals Place 4 on March 3, 2026.

		Candidate
		Audra Riley

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	There are no incumbents in this race.
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Texas Court of Criminal Appeals Place 4

Incumbent Kevin Patrick Yeary is running in the Republican primary for Texas Court of Criminal Appeals Place 4 on March 3, 2026.

		Candidate
		Kevin Patrick Yeary

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined.
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Place 9

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 election

Democratic primary for Texas Court of Criminal Appeals Place 9

Holly Taylor is running in the Democratic primary for Texas Court of Criminal Appeals Place 9 on March 3, 2026.

		Candidate
		Holly Taylor

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	There are no incumbents in this race.
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Texas Court of Criminal Appeals Place 9

Jennifer Balido and John Messinger are running in the Republican primary for Texas Court of Criminal Appeals Place 9 on March 3, 2026.

		Candidate
	Submit photo	Jennifer Balido
		John Messinger

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	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.

Judges not on the ballot

• Bert Richardson (R) - (Court of Criminal Appeals Place 3)
• David Newell (R) - (Court of Criminal Appeals Place 9)

Voting information

See also: Voting in Texas

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

About the Texas courts of last resort

See also: Texas Supreme Court

See also: Texas Court of Criminal Appeals

Political composition

This is the political composition of the court heading into the 2026 election.

Texas Supreme Court

■ Jimmy Blacklock		Appointed by Gov. Don Willett (R) in 2018
■ James Sullivan		Appointed by Gov. Greg Abbott (R) in 2025
■ Debra Lehrmann		Appointed by Gov. Rick Perry (R) in 2010
■ John Devine		Elected in 2012
■ Rebeca Huddle		Appointed by Gov. Greg Abbott (R) in 2020
■ Jane Bland		Appointed by Gov. Greg Abbott (R) in 2019
■ Kyle Hawkins		Appointed by Gov. Greg Abbott (R) in 2025
■ Brett Busby		Appointed by Gov. Greg Abbott (R) in 2019
■ Evan Young		Appointed by Gov. Greg Abbott (R) in 2021

Texas Court of Criminal Appeals

■ Mary Lou Keel		Elected in 2016
■ Bert Richardson		Elected in 2015
■ Kevin Patrick Yeary		Elected in 2014
■ Scott Walker		Elected in 2016
■ Jesse McClure		Appointed by Gov. Greg Abbott (R) in 2020
■ Gina Parker		Elected in 2024
■ Lee Finley		Elected in 2024
■ David Newell		Elected in 2014
■ David Schenck		Elected in 2024

Selection

The nine justices of the Texas Supreme Court are selected in statewide 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 Supreme Court, 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 justice for at least 10 years.

Chief justice

The chief justice of the Texas Supreme Court is selected by voters at large. He or she serves in that capacity for a full six-year term.

Vacancies

See also: How vacancies are filled in state supreme courts

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.

The map below highlights how vacancies are filled in state supreme courts across the country.

External links

• Search Google News for this topic
• Texas Supreme Court
• Texas Court of Criminal Appeals

Footnotes

Texas courts

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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

2026 State Judicial Elections

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