Christian Menefee

Christian Menefee (Democratic Party) is the Harris County Attorney in Texas. He assumed office on January 1, 2021. His current term ends on December 31, 2028.

Menefee (Democratic Party) is running in a special election to the U.S. House to represent Texas' 18th Congressional District. He is on the ballot in the special general election on November 4, 2025.^[source]

Menefee completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2025. Click here to read the survey answers.

Biography

Christian Menefee was born in Petaluma, California. He earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Texas at San Antonio in 2010 and a law degree from Washington University, St. Louis School of Law in 2013. His career experience includes working as a public servant.^[1]^[2]

Elections

2025

General election

The general election will occur on November 4, 2025.

Special general election for U.S. House Texas District 18

The following candidates are running in the special general election for U.S. House Texas District 18 on November 4, 2025.

		Candidate
	Submit photo	Feldon Bonner II (D)
		Amanda Edwards (D)
		Stephen Huey (D)
		Jolanda Jones (D)
		Isaiah Martin (D)
		Christian Menefee (D)
		Valencia Williams (D)
		Theodis Daniel (R)
	Submit photo	Ollie Knox (R)
		Carmen Montiel (R)
	Submit photo	Carter Page (R)
	Submit photo	Ronald Whitfield (R)
	Submit photo	Tammie Rochester (G)
	Submit photo	Reyna Anderson (Independent)
		Vince Duncan (Independent)
	Submit photo	George Foreman (Independent)

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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Endorsements

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2024

General election

General election for Harris County Attorney

Incumbent Christian Menefee defeated Jacqueline Lucci Smith in the general election for Harris County Attorney on November 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Christian Menefee (D)	50.6	739,048
	Submit photo	Jacqueline Lucci Smith (R)	49.4	722,031

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 1,461,079
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Harris County Attorney

Incumbent Christian Menefee defeated Umeka Lewis in the Democratic primary for Harris County Attorney on March 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Christian Menefee	70.0	108,207
	Submit photo	Umeka Lewis	30.0	46,282

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 154,489
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Harris County Attorney

Jacqueline Lucci Smith advanced from the Republican primary for Harris County Attorney on March 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Submit photo	Jacqueline Lucci Smith	100.0	142,237

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 142,237
= 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.

Endorsements

Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Menefee in this election.

2020

General election

General election for Harris County Attorney

Christian Menefee defeated John Nation in the general election for Harris County Attorney on November 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Christian Menefee (D)	54.7	848,451
	Submit photo	John Nation (R)	45.3	703,771

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 1,552,222
= 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 election

Democratic primary for Harris County Attorney

Christian Menefee defeated incumbent Vince Ryan and Ben Rose in the Democratic primary for Harris County Attorney on March 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Christian Menefee	50.4	125,971
	Submit photo	Vince Ryan	25.1	62,630
		Ben Rose	24.5	61,103

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 249,704
= 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 election

Republican primary for Harris County Attorney

John Nation advanced from the Republican primary for Harris County Attorney on March 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Submit photo	John Nation	100.0	152,793

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 152,793
= 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.

Campaign themes

2025

Video for Ballotpedia

Video submitted to Ballotpedia Released March 17, 2025

Ballotpedia survey responses

Christian Menefee completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2025. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Menefee's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

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Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

I’m Christian Menefee, the son of two veterans, a product of the Houston community, and the first in my family to graduate from college. I grew up on free lunch, went to college with a Pell Grant, and became the youngest and first African American elected as the County Attorney for Harris County, Texas. My wife and I are now raising our two boys in the same communities in the 18th Congressional District where we grew up. I’ve spent my career fighting for people—suing Donald Trump, Texas Republican leaders, and bad actors that hurt working families. It hasn’t been just talk. I work to get results. That’s the approach I’ll bring to Congress: a fighter who delivers for our communities.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

Protecting Our Democracy The right to vote is the foundation for every other freedom—and MAGA Republicans are trying to take it away. In Texas, I sued to stop them from canceling ballots and won. I also sued Donald Trump to stop massive federal layoffs that would have weakened Social Security and other services families rely on. In Congress, I’ll keep fighting back—defending voting rights, standing up to power, and protecting the programs that working people count on.
Lowering Costs and Reinvesting in Our Neighborhoods Life costs too much, and families in TX-18 feel it every day. Housing, childcare, and healthcare are out of reach for too many—and entire neighborhoods are still waiting on basics like grocery stores and decent infrastructure. In Congress, I’ll fight to lower everyday costs and bring investment to every part of our district. That means funding neighborhood clinics and early childhood education, creating workforce training programs, and helping more people get good-paying jobs—whether or not they go to college. That also means protecting Medicaid, food assistance, and other essential benefits that are critical to working families throughout our community.
Fighting for Reproductive Healthcare Decisions about birth control, abortion, and IVF should be made by families—not politicians. I’ve fought back in court against Texas’s extreme abortion bans and defended access to reproductive healthcare in other court cases around the country. I’ve made clear that reproductive care is healthcare—plain and simple. In Congress, I’ll keep up that fight: restoring the right to choose, protecting access to contraception and fertility treatments, and stopping national bans pushed by MAGA Republicans.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

Protecting the right to vote—because without it, we lose the power to fight for everything else. Generations of Americans, especially in Black and Latino communities, fought for the right to cast a ballot. But MAGA Republicans are working to roll those rights back: weakening the Voting Rights Act, purging voters from the rolls, and silencing the voices they can’t win over.

As County Attorney for Harris County, Texas, I stood up in court to stop voter suppression and protect elections, beating back efforts to cancel ballots and dismantle local election offices. In Congress, I’ll do the same: fighting to pass the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, the Freedom to Vote Act, and other laws to ensure our democracy works for everyone.

What characteristics or principles are most important for an elected official?

Elected officials should lead with integrity, discipline, and a deep commitment to public service. That means showing up, listening, and doing the hard work—not for headlines, but for real people. It also means standing up to the powerful when they threaten our communities—whether that power sits in a corporate boardroom, a governor’s mansion, or the White House.

As Harris County Attorney, I’ve done just that. I’ve taken President Trump to court when he tried to gut federal services like Social Security. I’ve challenged Texas MAGA officials when they passed laws to suppress the vote. And I’ve held scammers and corporations accountable when they preyed on vulnerable residents. In Congress, I’ll bring that same approach—principled, tough, and focused on getting results for the people I serve.

What was your very first job? How long did you have it?

My first job was selling candy in high school. I couldn’t get hired anywhere, so my dad bought me a bulk box of M&M’s, Skittles, and Snickers, and I started selling them at school—reinvesting the profits to keep it going. It taught me how to be resourceful and make the most of limited opportunities.

Not long after, I landed a job bagging groceries and pushing carts at a local store. I often worked the late shift on weekends—4:30 p.m. to 1 a.m.—even during high school. I stayed with that job for nearly five years, moving up to cashier, then business center attendant, and eventually a college intern in their management program. After graduating college and getting into law school, I went back for one last summer—still checking and bagging groceries and saving up before leaving.

Those jobs grounded me. They taught me the value of hard work, showing up, and staying focused. But more than that, they exposed me to the everyday struggles people face—families trying to make ends meet, neighbors helping each other get by. That perspective has stuck with me and shapes how I lead today: with humility, empathy, and a relentless focus on helping working families get ahead.

What organizations or individuals have endorsed your campaign?

Our campaign has been endorsed by more than 40 current and former elected officials from across Texas, as well as multiple labor unions, local faith leaders, Democratic precinct chairs, and respected community advocates. I’m proud to have the backing of people who know this district, believe in public service, and share our vision that TX-18 needs a fighter who gets things done, and that together we can make TX-18 one of the best places in Texas to live and raise a family.

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

2024

Christian Menefee did not complete Ballotpedia's 2024 Candidate Connection survey.

2020

Christian Menefee completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Menefee's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

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Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

Christian is the son of two veterans, and was raised in and currently lives in Houston, TX. He attended Klein Forest and Alief Hastings High Schools. He earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Texas at San Antonio, and a J.D. from Washington University School of Law in St. Louis. Christian is a commercial litigator, having began his practice at Norton Rose Fulbright and later practicing at Kirkland & Ellis LLP.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

N/A
N/A
N/A

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

Criminal justice reform, voter rights, and local control.

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

Campaign finance summary

Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.

Christian Menefee campaign contribution history
Year	Office	Status	Contributions	Expenditures
2025*	U.S. House Texas District 18	On the Ballot general	$977,796	$337,207
Grand total			$977,796	$337,207
Sources: OpenSecrets, Federal Elections Commission *This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).
* Data from this year may not be complete

External links

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Candidate

U.S. House Texas District 18

Personal

Footnotes

↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on May 22, 2025
↑ ’’Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on March 9, 2020’’

[1] Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on May 22, 2025

[bio-2] ’’Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on March 9, 2020’’

[1]

[2]

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Christian Menefee

Biography

Elections

2025

General election

Special general election for U.S. House Texas District 18

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Endorsements

2024

General election

General election for Harris County Attorney

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Harris County Attorney

Republican primary election

Republican primary for Harris County Attorney

Endorsements

2020

General election

General election for Harris County Attorney

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Harris County Attorney

Republican primary election

Republican primary for Harris County Attorney

Campaign themes

2025

Video for Ballotpedia

Ballotpedia survey responses

2024

2020

Campaign finance summary

See also

External links

Footnotes

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