The newly redrawn U.S. House District 33 race is expected to continue into a May runoff after neither of the top Democratic or Republican candidates secured the majority needed to win the nomination outright in Tuesday’s primary.

One of the most followed races for this election is the democrat ticket for this district. Former U.S. Rep. Colin Allred led the field with roughly 44% of the vote, followed by incumbent U.S. Rep. Julie Johnson with about 33%, according to returns as of early Wednesday.

Under Texas law, if no candidate gets more than 50 percent, the top two move on — meaning voters won’t know the November matchup until late May.

District 33, once split across Dallas and Tarrant counties, was redrawn during the last legislative session and now sits entirely within central Dallas County. The remapping forced the two North Texas Democrats into the same district, turning the contest into one of the most closely watched intraparty matchups in the state.

Allred, a former three‑term congressman who left his seat to run unsuccessfully for the U.S. Senate in 2024, reentered the House landscape after ending a 2026 Senate bid. He told supporters at his watch party at the African American Museum at Fair Park that he was prepared for a continued fight into the runoff.

“There’s also going to speak some hard truths at times to our party. That’s some of the things that we have to clean up in our own house to make sure that when folks see us, they don’t see us as all being part of the problem,” he told the crowd on Tuesday night. “There’s a lot of work to do. I know Dallas and Dallas knows me. I’m looking forward to this runoff. I’ve never been more energized.”

Johnson, elected in 2024 to succeed Allred in the former 32nd District, opted to run in the reconfigured 33rd rather than compete in a more GOP‑leaning district to the east. She did not appear at the Dallas County Democratic watch event Tuesday night but acknowledged the race was poised for a runoff.

“This has been a broad coalition campaign. We’ve had support from everyone from the Tejano Democrats, the Black Democrats, the LGBT Democrats, women, labor, business, medicine, all across the board. And I think that’s what it takes. You have to be willing to work hard and go to the people, meet people where they are and earn their vote,” she told NBC 5 earlier in the day as voters headed to the polls on Tuesday.

On the Republican side, no clear frontrunner has emerged. Patrick Gillespie led with about 35% of the vote, while John Sims, Monte Mitchell and Kurt Schwab clustered between 20% and 22% as of early Wednesday. With no candidate approaching a majority, the GOP race is also likely headed to a runoff.

The winner of the Democratic runoff will enter November as the heavy favorite in a district considered safely Democratic, according to statewide election analyses.

The May 26th runoff will determine which candidates advance to the general election for the reshaped congressional seat.