Early voting numbers show a strong lead for former Houston Mayor Annise Parker in the Democratic primary for Harris County Judge.
As of 10 p.m. on Tuesday night, Parker, who served as mayor from 2010 to 2016, was leading with 48.55% of the votes over Councilmember Letita Plummer, who secured 37.47% of the early votes.
It has been 12 years since Parker was on the ballot. She told supporters at her party that she was confident she would be the next county judge.
Orlando Sanchez, a former City of Houston Councilmember and Harris County Treasurer, was the projected frontrunner in the Republican primary, based on a poll released by the University of Houston Hobby School of Public Affairs in February.
Sanchez secured 25.95% of the early votes, followed by Marty Lancton, who leads the local firefighter union, with 22.35%. Aliza Dutt secured 20.25% of early votes.
Sanchez said he was confident entering election day but not overly confident. With six candidates in the race, he said he expected it to go to a runoff, which will be held in May.
Both Parker and Sanchez told ABC13 they will lean on their experience in office.
The winner in November will replace Judge Lina Hidalgo, who announced in 2025 that she would not seek a third term.