Texas House
Filing Deadline: Jan. 2, 2008 • Primary Date: March 4, 2008 • General Election: Nov. 4, 2008District Profile: Until 2004, East Texas was represented by Democrats in the House. But the 2003 Republican redistricting changed that by reshaping the old 1st District. Full Profile
2006 results: Louie Gohmert (R) defeated Roger Owen (D) by 68-30%.
Incumbent
Louie Gohmert (R)Elected in 2004; Seeking third term; Gohmert was unopposed in the primary.
Challenger
None
District Profile: In the 2003 redistricting, the new 2nd was created by adding parts of the old 8th District in Harris County and the old 9th District in Jefferson County. Full Profile
2006 results: Ted Poe (R) defeated Gary Binderim (D) by 66-33%.
Incumbent
Ted Poe (R)Elected in 2004; Seeking third term; Poe was unopposed in the primary.
Challenger
None
District Profile: This was one of the state's fastest-growing districts between 2000–05, and is solidly Republican, with 67 percent voting for George W. Bush in 2004. Full Profile
2006 results: Sam Johnson (R) defeated Dan Dodd (D) by 63-35%.
Incumbent
Sam Johnson (R)Elected in May 1991; Seeking ninth full term; Johnson was nominated with 87% in a two-way primary.
Challenger
Tom Daley (D)Daley, an attorney, was nominated with 72% in a two-way primary.
District Profile: In 1940, when Sam Rayburn (D) first became speaker, 90 percent of his district voted for FDR. In 2004, 70 percent of the 4th voted for Bush. Full Profile
2006 results: Ralph Hall (R) defeated Glenn Melancon (D) by 64-33%.
Incumbent
Ralph Hall (R)Elected in 1980; Seeking 15th term; Hall was nominated with 73% in a five-way primary.
Challenger
Glenn Melancon (D)Melancon, a professor, was nominated with 57% in a two-way primary.
District Profile: As rural areas swung away from the Democrats, the 5th District switched from a battleground in the early 1990s to a safe Republican seat. Full Profile
2006 results: Jeb Hensarling (R) defeated Charlie Thompson (D) by 62-36%.
Incumbent
Jeb Hensarling (R)Elected in 2002; Seeking fourth term; Hensarling was unopposed in the primary.
Challenger
None
District Profile: Politically, this territory was Democratic for many years; all of it voted for John F. Kennedy over Richard Nixon in 1960. But those days are gone. Full Profile
2006 results: Joe Barton (R) defeated David Harris (D) by 60-37%.
Incumbent
Joe Barton (R)Elected in 1984; Seeking 13th term; Barton was unopposed in the primary.
Challenger
Ludwig Otto (D)Otto, an educator, was nominated with 51% in a two-way primary.
District Profile: Like many precincts full of elite voters, Republicans in the 7th District have not taken a liking to George W. Bush's brand of Republicanism. Full Profile
2006 results: John Culberson (R) defeated Jim Henley (D) by 59-38%.
Incumbent
John Culberson (R)Elected in 2000; Seeking fifth term; Culberson was unopposed in the primary.
Challenger
Michael Skelly (D)Skelly, a businessman, was unopposed in the primary.
District Profile: The old 8th voted 78 percent for Bush in 2000, his highest figure in the nation. In the new 8th, in 2004, he won a comparatively modest 72 percent. Full Profile
2006 results: Kevin Brady (R) defeated Jim Wright (D) by 67-33%.
Incumbent
Kevin Brady (R)Elected in 1996; Seeking seventh term; Brady was unopposed in the primary.
Challenger
Kent Hargett (D)Hargett, a nonprofit group director, was unopposed in the primary.
District Profile: The 9th District occupies much of the territory that was in the 25th before the 2003 redistricting; it was redrawn to include more blacks and Asians. Full Profile
2006 results: Al Green (D) was unopposed.
Incumbent
Al Green (D)Elected in 2004; Seeking third term; Green was unopposed in the primary.
Challenger
None
District Profile: Overall, this is a heavily Republican district -- 62 percent for George W. Bush in 2004. Full Profile
2006 results: Michael McCaul (R) defeated Ted Ankrum (D) by 55-40%.
Incumbent
Michael McCaul (R)Elected in 2004; Seeking third term; McCaul was unopposed in the primary.
Challenger
Larry Joe Doherty (D)Doherty, an attorney, was nominated with 61% in a two-way primary.
District Profile: In 2004, the 11th District cast 78 percent of its votes for Bush, his highest percentage in the nation. Full Profile
2006 results: Mike Conaway (R) was unopposed.
Incumbent
Mike Conaway (R)Elected in 2004; Seeking third term; Conway was unopposed in the primary.
Challenger
None
District Profile: The 12th District, represented by the Democratic speaker of the House as recently as 1989, is now solidly Republican -- 67 percent for Bush in 2004. Full Profile
2006 results: Kay Granger (R) defeated John Morris (D) by 67-31%.
Incumbent
Kay Granger (R)Elected in 1996; Seeking seventh term; Granger was unopposed in the primary.
District Profile: The 78 percent that George W. Bush won here in 2004 was his third-best performance in the nation. Full Profile
2006 results: Mac Thornberry (R) defeated Roger Waun (D) by 74-23%.
Incumbent
Mac Thornberry (R)Elected in 1994; Seeking eighth term; Thornberry was unopposed in the primary.
District Profile: This is a district that is mostly small-city Texas, but much of it now surrounds the suburban fringes of metropolitan Houston. Full Profile
2006 results: Ron Paul (R) defeated Shane Sklar (D) by 60-40%.
Incumbent
Ron Paul (R)Elected in 1976, 1978 and 1996; Seeking tenth full term; Paul was nominated with 70% in a two-way primary.
Challenger
None
District Profile: The latest redistricting reduced the number of counties in the 15th to 12 and increased its Hispanic percentage to 78 percent. Full Profile
2006 results: Ruben Hinojosa (D) defeated Paul Haring (R) and Eddie Zamora (R) by 62% to 24% and 15%, respectively.
Incumbent
Ruben Hinojosa (D)Elected in 1996; Seeking seventh term; Hinojosa was unopposed in the primary.
District Profile: The 16th is made up of 96 percent of El Paso County -- closer to Los Angeles than to Beaumont and in a different time zone from the rest of the state. Full Profile
2006 results: Silvestre Reyes (D) defeated Gordon Strickland (L) by 79-21%.
Incumbent
Silvestre Reyes (D)Elected in 1996; Seeking seventh term; Reyes was nominated with 80% in a two-way primary.
Challenger
None
District Profile: This area voted Democratic in 1968, when most of the rural South went Republican, but it seems to have followed most of Texas and leaned to the right as well. Full Profile
2006 results: Chet Edwards (D) defeated Van Taylor (R) by 58-40%.
Incumbent
Chet Edwards (D)Elected in 1990; Seeking tenth term; Edwards was unopposed in the primary.
Challenger
Rob Curnock (R)Curnock, a business owner, was unopposed in the primary.
District Profile: This Houston-area district and Dallas' 30th are the two most heavily Democratic districts in Texas. Full Profile
2006 results: Sheila Jackson Lee (D) defeated Ahmad Hassan (R) by 77-19%.
Incumbent
Sheila Jackson Lee (D)Elected in 1994; Seeking eighth term; Jackson Lee was unopposed in the primary.
Challenger
John Faulk (R)Faulk, a former health care administrator, was nominated with 78% in a two-way primary.
District Profile: This part of West Texas is heavily Republican; Bush received 77 percent in the 19th District in 2004. Full Profile
2006 results: Randy Neugebauer (R) defeated Robert Ricketts (D) by 68-30%.
Incumbent
Randy Neugebauer (R)Elected in June 2003; Seeking third full term; Neugebauer was unopposed in the primary.
Challenger
Dwight Fullingim (D)Fullingim, a consultant, was nominated with 62% in a two-way primary.
District Profile: The 20th is one of the state's eight mostly Latino districts, and, in 1961, it became the first to elect a Hispanic congressman. It is Democratic, but not overwhelmingly so. Full Profile
2006 results: Charles Gonzalez (D) defeated Michael Idrogo (L) by 87-13%.
Incumbent
Charles Gonzalez (D)Elected in 1998; Seeking sixth term; Gonzalez was unopposed in the primary.
Challenger
Rob Litoff (R)Litoff, a retiree, was unopposed in the primary.
District Profile: Travis County leans Democratic, but the overall the district is heavily Republican. Full Profile
2006 results: Lamar Smith (R) defeated John Courage (D) and Gene Kelly (D) by 60% to 25% and 9%, respectively.
Incumbent
Lamar Smith (R)Elected in 1986; Seeking twelfth term; Smith was unopposed in the primary.
Challenger
None
District Profile: Politically, the 22nd still leans Republican, but not quite as strongly as before the 2003 redistricting. Full Profile
2006 results: Nick Lampson (D) defeated write-in candidate Shelley Sekula Gibbs (R) by 52-42%. Sekula Gibbs won the special election to replace Tom DeLay (R) after his resignation, and served in the lame-duck session of the 109th Congress.
Incumbent
Nick Lampson (D)Elected in 1996 and 2006; Seeking sixth term; Lampson was unopposed in the primary.
Challengers
Pete Olson (R)Olson, an attorney, was nominated after a runoff with 68% of the vote.
District Profile: The 23rd is geographically the largest in the state, larger than almost any state east of the Mississippi. Full Profile
2006 results: Ciro Rodriguez (D) defeated Henry Bonilla (R) by 54-46% in a runoff.
Incumbent
Ciro Rodriguez (D)Elected in 1997 and 2006; Seeking fifth full term; Rodriguez was unopposed in the primary.
Challenger
Lyle Larson (R)Larson, a Bexar county commissioner, was nominated with 62% in a two-way primary.
District Profile: The 24th District was transformed by the 2003 redistricting, and it now includes three large spokes that reach out from the Dallas-Fort Worth airport. Full Profile
2006 results: Kenny Marchant (R) defeated Gary Page (D) by 60-37%.
Incumbent
Kenny Marchant (R)Elected in 2004; Seeking third term; Marchant was unopposed in the primary.
District Profile: The 25th, a seat created in the 2003 redistricting, covers most of the east side of Austin and Travis County, including most of the city's heavily black and Latino neighborhoods. Full Profile
2006 results: Lloyd Doggett (D) defeated Grant Rostig (R) by 67-26%.
Incumbent
Lloyd Doggett (D)Elected in 1994; Seeking eighth term; Doggett was unopposed in the primary.
Challenger
George Morovich (R)Morovich, an environmental contractor, was unopposed in the primary.
District Profile: The 26th was changed significantly by redistricting, which made it less Republican by removing suburban precincts and adding predominantly black precincts. Full Profile
2006 results: Michael Burgess (R) defeated Tim Barnwell (D) by 60-37%.
Incumbent
Michael Burgess (R)Elected in 2002; Seeking fourth term; Burgess was unopposed in the primary.
Challenger
Ken Leach (D)Leach, a retired civil servant, was unopposed in the primary.
District Profile: Politically, the 27th District is Democratic -- but not as Democratic as one might expect. Full Profile
2006 results: Solomon Ortiz (D) defeated William Vaden (R) by 57-39%.
Incumbent
Solomon Ortiz (D)Elected in 1982; Seeking fourteenth term; Ortiz was unopposed in the primary.
Challenger
William Vaden (R)Vaden, a former Ingleside mayor, was nominated with 56% in a two-way primary.
District Profile: The redistricting plan imposed by a federal court in August 2006 made Laredo the new centerpiece of the 28th, which was previously based in San Antonio. Full Profile
2006 results: Henry Cuellar (D) defeated Frank Enriquez (D) and Ron Avery (CON) by 68% to 20% and 12%, respectively.
Incumbent
Henry Cuellar (D)Elected in 2004; Seeking third term; Cuellar was unopposed in the primary.
Challenger
Jim Fish (R)Fish, a health-care consultant, was unopposed in the primary.
District Profile: This part of Houston has always been considered heavily Democratic, but in 2004, Bush lost it by only a 12-point margin. Full Profile
2006 results: Gene Green (D) defeated Eric Story (R) by 74-24%.
Incumbent
Gene Green (D)Elected in 1992; Seeking ninth term; Green was unopposed in the primary.
Challenger
None
District Profile: The 30th District, designed to be the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex's black-majority district, includes most of Dallas' predominantly black neighborhoods. Full Profile
2006 results: Eddie Bernice Johnson (D) defeated Wilson Aurbach (R) by 80-18%.
Incumbent
Eddie Bernice Johnson (D)Elected in 1992; Seeking ninth term; Johnson was unopposed in the primary.
Challenger
None
District Profile: The 31st, newly created in the 2001 court redistricting and sharply altered in the 2003 GOP legislative redistricting, is dominated by Williamson, Bell and Coryell counties. Full Profile
2006 results: John Carter (R) defeated Mary Beth Harrell (D) by 58-39% .
Incumbent
John Carter (R)Elected in 2002; Seeking fourth term; Carter was unopposed in the primary.
District Profile: Redistricting raised the Latino percentage from 27 percent to 36 percent. As in Houston's elite 7th District, Bush's percentage declined in the 32nd in 2004. Full Profile
2006 results: Pete Sessions (R) defeated Will Pryor (D) by 56-41%.
Incumbent
Pete Sessions (R)Elected in 1996; Seeking seventh term; Sessions was unopposed in the primary.
Challengers
Steve Love (D), retired pastor
Eric Roberson (D), attorney
In the March 4 primary, Roberson received 45% of the vote while Love received 33%. A runoff will be held April 8.
Race Rankings
Based on likelihood of seat switching party control
1.
Ill.-11
(Open-R)2.
Va.-11
(Open-R)3.
N.Y.-25
(Open-R)4.
Ariz.-01
(Open-R)5.
Texas-22
(Lampson-D)6.
N.J.-03
(Open-R)7.
N.J.-07
(Open-R)8.
N.M.-01
(Open-R)9.
Ohio-16
(Open-R)10.
Ohio-15
(Open-R)Previous Coverage
Check out National Journal's coverage of previous Texas house races.
