United States Senate election in Texas, 2024 (March 5 Republican primary)
A Republican Party primary took place on March 5, 2024, in Texas to determine which Republican candidate would run in the state's general election on November 5, 2024.
Incumbent Ted Cruz advanced from the Republican primary for U.S. Senate Texas.
Thirty-four of 100 seats in the U.S. Senate were up for election in 2024, including one special election. At the time of the election, Democrats had a 51-49 majority.[1] Of the seats up for election in 2024, Democrats held 19, Republicans held 11, and independents held four. As of May 2024, eight members of the U.S. Senate had announced they were not running for re-election.
| Candidate filing deadline | Primary election | General election |
|---|---|---|
Heading into the election, the incumbent was Ted Cruz (Republican), who was first elected in 2012.
A primary election is an election in which registered voters select a candidate that they believe should be a political party's candidate for elected office to run in the general election. They are also used to choose convention delegates and party leaders. Primaries are state-level and local-level elections that take place prior to a general election. Texas utilizes an open primary system. Voters do not have to register with a party in advance in order to participate in that party's primary. The voter must sign a pledge stating the following (the language below is taken directly from state statutes)[2]
| “ | The following pledge shall be placed on the primary election ballot above the listing of candidates' names: 'I am a (insert appropriate political party) and understand that I am ineligible to vote or participate in another political party's primary election or convention during this voting year.'[3] | ” |
For information about which offices are nominated via primary election, see this article.
This page focuses on Texas' United States Senate Republican primary. For more in-depth information on the state's Democratic primary, Libertarian convention, and the general election, see the following pages:
- United States Senate election in Texas, 2024 (March 5 Democratic primary)
- United States Senate election in Texas, 2024 (April 14 Libertarian convention)
- United States Senate election in Texas, 2024
Candidates and election results
Republican primary election
Republican primary for U.S. Senate Texas
Incumbent Ted Cruz defeated Holland Gibson and Rufus Lopez in the Republican primary for U.S. Senate Texas on March 5, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Ted Cruz | 88.3 | 1,977,961 |
| Holland Gibson | 6.0 | 134,011 | ||
| Rufus Lopez | 5.7 | 127,986 | ||
| Total votes: 2,239,958 | |||
 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Cody Andrews (R)
- Carlos Garza (R)
- Josiah Ingalls (R)
- Montgomery Markland (R)
Candidate profiles
This section includes candidate profiles that may be created in one of two ways: either the candidate completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey, or Ballotpedia staff may compile a profile based on campaign websites, advertisements, and public statements after identifying the candidate as noteworthy. For more on how we select candidates to include, click here.
Party: Republican Party
Incumbent: Yes
Political Office:
- U.S. Senate, Texas (Assumed office: 2013)
- Solicitor General of Texas (2003-2008)
Biography: Cruz received a bachelor's degree from Princeton University and a law degree from Harvard Law School. Before serving in the Senate, he was the Solicitor General of Texas from 2003 to 2008 and a law clerk to United States Chief Justice William Rehnquist.
Show sources
This information was current as of the candidate's run for U.S. Senate Texas in 2024.
Voting information
- See also: Voting in Texas
Campaign finance
| Name | Party | Receipts* | Disbursements** | Cash on hand | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ted Cruz | Republican Party | $107,113,866 | $105,485,117 | $1,786,707 | As of December 31, 2024 |
| Holland Gibson | Republican Party | $0 | $0 | $0 | Data not available*** |
| Rufus Lopez | Republican Party | $67,200 | $13,147 | $6,000 | As of April 15, 2024 |
|
Source: Federal Elections Commission, "Campaign finance data," 2024. This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).
* According to the FEC, "Receipts are anything of value (money, goods, services or property) received by a political committee." |
|||||
Ballot access requirements
The table below details filing requirements for U.S. Senate candidates in Texas in the 2024 election cycle. For additional information on candidate ballot access requirements in Texas, click here.
| Filing requirements for U.S. Senate candidates, 2024 | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| State | Office | Party | Signatures required | Signature formula | Filing fee | Filing fee formula | Filing deadline | Source |
| Texas | U.S. Senate | Democratic or Republican | 5,000 | Fixed number | $5,000.00 | Fixed number | 12/11/2023 | Source |
| Texas | U.S. Senate | Unaffiliated | 83,717 | 1% of all votes cast for governor in the last election | N/A | N/A | 12/11/2023 | Source |
Election analysis
Click the tabs below to view information about demographics, past elections, and partisan control of the state.
- Presidential elections - Information about presidential elections in the state.
- Statewide elections - Information about recent U.S. Senate and gubernatorial elections in the state.
- State partisanship - The partisan makeup of the state's congressional delegation and state government.
- Demographics - Information about the state's demographics and how they compare to the country as a whole.
Cook PVI by congressional district
2020 presidential results by 2024 congressional district lines
| 2020 presidential results in congressional districts based on 2024 district lines, Texas[4] | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| District | Joe Biden 
|
Donald Trump 
| ||
| Texas' 1st | 26.5% | 72.4% | ||
| Texas' 2nd | 37.9% | 60.7% | ||
| Texas' 3rd | 42.0% | 56.4% | ||
| Texas' 4th | 36.4% | 62.4% | ||
| Texas' 5th | 38.2% | 60.6% | ||
| Texas' 6th | 37.4% | 61.3% | ||
| Texas' 7th | 64.2% | 34.5% | ||
| Texas' 8th | 35.8% | 63.0% | ||
| Texas' 9th | 76.2% | 22.8% | ||
| Texas' 10th | 39.8% | 58.6% | ||
| Texas' 11th | 29.1% | 69.5% | ||
| Texas' 12th | 40.1% | 58.3% | ||
| Texas' 13th | 26.5% | 72.0% | ||
| Texas' 14th | 35.0% | 63.6% | ||
| Texas' 15th | 48.1% | 51.0% | ||
| Texas' 16th | 67.0% | 31.5% | ||
| Texas' 17th | 38.0% | 60.5% | ||
| Texas' 18th | 73.6% | 25.1% | ||
| Texas' 19th | 26.2% | 72.4% | ||
| Texas' 20th | 65.8% | 32.7% | ||
| Texas' 21st | 39.4% | 59.1% | ||
| Texas' 22nd | 41.3% | 57.4% | ||
| Texas' 23rd | 45.8% | 52.9% | ||
| Texas' 24th | 43.0% | 55.4% | ||
| Texas' 25th | 33.8% | 64.9% | ||
| Texas' 26th | 40.0% | 58.6% | ||
| Texas' 27th | 38.1% | 60.6% | ||
| Texas' 28th | 52.9% | 45.9% | ||
| Texas' 29th | 67.8% | 31.0% | ||
| Texas' 30th | 77.8% | 21.0% | ||
| Texas' 31st | 39.0% | 59.2% | ||
| Texas' 32nd | 65.7% | 32.7% | ||
| Texas' 33rd | 74.2% | 24.4% | ||
| Texas' 34th | 57.3% | 41.8% | ||
| Texas' 35th | 71.7% | 26.5% | ||
| Texas' 36th | 33.6% | 65.2% | ||
| Texas' 37th | 75.5% | 22.7% | ||
| Texas' 38th | 40.2% | 58.4% | ||
2012-2020
How a state's counties vote in a presidential election and the size of those counties can provide additional insights into election outcomes at other levels of government including statewide and congressional races. Below, four categories are used to describe each county's voting pattern over the 2012, 2016, and 2020 presidential elections: Solid, Trending, Battleground, and New. Click [show] on the table below for examples:
| County-level voting pattern categories | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | |||||||
| Status | 2012 | 2016 | 2020 | ||||
| Solid Democratic | D | D | D | ||||
| Trending Democratic | R | D | D | ||||
| Battleground Democratic | D | R | D | ||||
| New Democratic | R | R | D | ||||
| Republican | |||||||
| Status | 2012 | 2016 | 2020 | ||||
| Solid Republican | R | R | R | ||||
| Trending Republican | D | R | R | ||||
| Battleground Republican | R | D | R | ||||
| New Republican | D | D | R | ||||
Following the 2020 presidential election, 45.5% of Texans lived in one of the state's 18 Solid Democratic counties, which voted for the Democratic presidential candidate in every election from 2012 to 2020, and 40.1% lived in one of 223 Solid Republican counties. Overall, Texas was Solid Republican, having voted for Mitt Romney (R) in 2012, Donald Trump (R) in 2016, and Donald Trump (R) in 2020. Use the table below to view the total number of each type of county in Texas following the 2020 election as well as the overall percentage of the state population located in each county type.
| Texas county-level statistics, 2020 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Solid Democratic | 18 | 45.5% | |||||
| Solid Republican | 223 | 40.1% | |||||
| New Democratic | 3 | 10.2% | |||||
| Trending Democratic | 1 | 2.8% | |||||
| Trending Republican | 1 | 0.9% | |||||
| New Republican | 7 | 0.6% | |||||
| Battleground Republican | 1 | <0.1% | |||||
| Total voted Democratic | 22 | 58.5% | |||||
| Total voted Republican | 232 | 41.5% | |||||
Historical voting trends
Texas presidential election results (1900-2020)
- 16 Democratic wins
- 15 Republican wins
| Year | 1900 | 1904 | 1908 | 1912 | 1916 | 1920 | 1924 | 1928 | 1932 | 1936 | 1940 | 1944 | 1948 | 1952 | 1956 | 1960 | 1964 | 1968 | 1972 | 1976 | 1980 | 1984 | 1988 | 1992 | 1996 | 2000 | 2004 | 2008 | 2012 | 2016 | 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winning Party | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | R | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | D | D | D | R | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R |
This section details the results of the five most recent U.S. Senate and gubernatorial elections held in the state.
U.S. Senate elections
The table below details the vote in the five most recent U.S. Senate races in Texas.
| U.S. Senate election results in Texas | ||
|---|---|---|
| Race | Winner | Runner up |
| 2020 | 53.5% |
43.9%
|
| 2018 | 50.9% |
48.3%
|
| 2014 | 61.6% |
34.4%
|
| 2012 | 56.5% |
40.7%
|
| 2008 | 54.8% |
42.8%
|
| Average | 55.5 | 42.0 |
Gubernatorial elections
- See also: Governor of Texas
The table below details the vote in the five most recent gubernatorial elections in Texas.
| Gubernatorial election results in Texas | ||
|---|---|---|
| Race | Winner | Runner up |
| 2022 | 54.8% |
43.9%
|
| 2018 | 55.8% |
42.5%
|
| 2014 | 59.3% |
38.9%
|
| 2010 | 55.0% |
42.3%
|
| 2006 | 39.0% |
29.8%
|
| Average | 53.4 | 38.7 |
- See also: Party control of Texas state government
Congressional delegation
The table below displays the partisan composition of Texas' congressional delegation as of May 2024.
| Congressional Partisan Breakdown from Texas | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | U.S. Senate | U.S. House | Total |
| Democratic | 0 | 12 | 12 |
| Republican | 2 | 25 | 27 |
| Independent | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Vacancies | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Total | 2 | 38 | 40 |
State executive
The table below displays the officeholders in Texas' top four state executive offices as of May 2024.
| State executive officials in Texas, May 2024 | |
|---|---|
| Office | Officeholder |
| Governor | Greg Abbott
|
| Lieutenant Governor | Dan Patrick
|
| Secretary of State | Jane Nelson
|
| Attorney General | Ken Paxton
|
State legislature
Texas State Senate
| Party | As of February 2024 | |
|---|---|---|
| Democratic Party | 11 | |
| Republican Party | 19 | |
| Other | 0 | |
| Vacancies | 1 | |
| Total | 31 | |
Texas House of Representatives
| Party | As of February 2024 | |
|---|---|---|
| Democratic Party | 64 | |
| Republican Party | 86 | |
| Other | 0 | |
| Vacancies | 0 | |
| Total | 150 | |
Trifecta control
The table below shows the state's trifecta status from 1992 until the 2024 election.
Texas Party Control: 1992-2024
Three years of Democratic trifectas • Twenty-two years of Republican trifectas
Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.
| Year | 92 | 93 | 94 | 95 | 96 | 97 | 98 | 99 | 00 | 01 | 02 | 03 | 04 | 05 | 06 | 07 | 08 | 09 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Governor | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R |
| Senate | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R |
| House | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R |
The table below details demographic data in Texas and compares it to the broader United States as of 2022.
| Demographic Data for Texas | ||
|---|---|---|
| Texas | United States | |
| Population | 29,145,505 | 331,449,281 |
| Land area (sq mi) | 261,268 | 3,531,905 |
| Race and ethnicity** | ||
| White | 59.1% | 65.9% |
| Black/African American | 12.1% | 12.5% |
| Asian | 5.2% | 5.8% |
| Native American | 0.6% | 0.8% |
| Pacific Islander | 0.1% | 0.2% |
| Other (single race) | 7.8% | 6% |
| Multiple | 15.1% | 8.8% |
| Hispanic/Latino | 39.9% | 18.7% |
| Education | ||
| High school graduation rate | 85.2% | 89.1% |
| College graduation rate | 32.3% | 34.3% |
| Income | ||
| Median household income | $73,035 | $75,149 |
| Persons below poverty level | 10.7% | 8.8% |
| Source: population provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "Decennial Census" (2020). Other figures provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2017-2022). | ||
| **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. | ||
See also
- United States Senate election in Texas, 2024 (March 5 Democratic primary)
- United States Senate election in Texas, 2024 (April 14 Libertarian convention)
- United States Senate election in Texas, 2024
- United States Senate Democratic Party primaries, 2024
- United States Senate Republican Party primaries, 2024
- United States Senate elections, 2024
- U.S. Senate battlegrounds, 2024
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Two Independents caucused with the Democratic Party. Another independent, Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, counted toward the Democratic majority for committee purposes.
- ↑ Texas Statutes, "Section 172.086," accessed October 7, 2024
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Daily Kos, "Daily Kos Elections' presidential results by congressional district for 2020, 2016, and 2012," accessed December 15, 2023
