WACO, Texas (KWTX) – Texas voters are heading back to the polls Tuesday for a slate of high-stakes runoff elections \u2014 from a closely watched U.S. Senate race to local courthouse contests that directly affect your community. Here\u2019s a breakdown of every race on the ballot.<\/p>\n
The Big One: U.S. Senate Republican Runoff<\/p>\n
John Cornyn vs. Ken Paxton<\/p>\n
This is the race drawing the most attention \u2014 and the most money.<\/p>\n
Republican incumbent Sen. John Cornyn and Attorney General Ken Paxton finished just points apart in the March primary, forcing Tuesday\u2019s runoff. Together, the two campaigns and their allies have spent nearly $25 million on ads \u2014 many of them personal attacks.<\/p>\n
Cornyn argues he\u2019s a proven conservative with the seniority and relationships to deliver for Texas in Washington.Paxton is running as a Trump-aligned \u201cAmerica First\u201d voice, promising a more aggressive approach in the Senate.<\/p>\n
Former President Donald Trump has endorsed Paxton \u2014 an endorsement that has carried real weight this cycle. Trump-backed challengers have already knocked off Republican incumbents in Indiana and Kentucky this year.<\/p>\n
Polls show the race is tight. The winner faces Democratic nominee James Talarico, an Austin state representative who won his party\u2019s Senate primary earlier this year, in November.<\/p>\n
More Statewide RacesU.S. House District 17 \u2013 Democratic Runoff<\/p>\n
Jamilah Flores vs. Casey Shepard<\/p>\n
Democratic voters in Central Texas \u2014 a district covering Waco, Bryan-College Station and parts of Central and East Central Texas \u2014 will pick their nominee to take on Republican Rep. Pete Sessions in November. Flores and Shepard both focus on health care costs, public education and infrastructure, but offer different styles: one rooted in grassroots activism, the other in policy experience and a more moderate approach. Sessions, unopposed in the GOP primary, is already focused on the general election.<\/p>\n
Attorney General \u2013 Republican Runoff<\/p>\n
State Sen. Mayes Middleton vs. U.S. Rep. Chip Roy<\/p>\n
With Ken Paxton vacating the office to run for Senate, Republicans are choosing his replacement. Middleton, a wealthy oil and gas heir, has poured more than $16 million of his own money into the race and finished first in March. Roy, a former federal prosecutor and one-time top Paxton deputy, argues Middleton is trying to \u201cbuy\u201d the job and says his courtroom experience makes him ready on day one.<\/p>\n
Attorney General \u2013 Democratic Runoff<\/p>\n
State Sen. Nathan Johnson vs. Former Galveston Mayor Joe Jaworski<\/p>\n
Democrats are also choosing their nominee for AG. The winners of both runoffs will face each other in November for control of one of the most powerful law enforcement offices in the country.<\/p>\n
Lieutenant Governor \u2013 Democratic Runoff<\/p>\n
State Rep. Vikki Goodwin vs. Marcos V\u00e9lez<\/p>\n
Democratic voters will decide who takes on Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick in November. Goodwin, an Austin progressive first elected in 2018, is running on school funding, housing affordability and Medicaid expansion. V\u00e9lez, a longtime steelworkers union leader, is campaigning as a blue-collar advocate for working families. Patrick, a close Trump ally seeking a fourth term, easily won his GOP primary in March.<\/p>\n
Texas Railroad Commission \u2013 Republican Runoff<\/p>\n
Incumbent Jim Wright vs. Bo French<\/p>\n
This race decides who regulates most of Texas\u2019 oil and gas industry. Wright, first elected in 2020, is backed by top state Republicans and major energy donors. French, a former Tarrant County GOP chair, is running as a \u201cMAGA conservative\u201d promising a more hard-line approach. The winner faces Democrat Jon Rosenthal and Libertarian Arthur DiBianca in November.<\/p>\n
Court of Criminal Appeals, Place 3 \u2013 Republican Runoff<\/p>\n
Alison Fox vs. Thomas Smith<\/p>\n
Voters will choose a justice for the state\u2019s highest criminal court \u2014 which handles felony and death penalty cases. Fox is a longtime court staff attorney and former prosecutor backed by police unions and major newspaper editorial boards. Smith is an assistant attorney general and former Paxton counsel, running with Paxton\u2019s endorsement. The winner faces Democrat Okey Anyiam and Libertarian Mark Ash in November.<\/p>\n
State Board of Education, District 5 \u2013 Democratic Runoff<\/p>\n
Allison Bush vs. Stephanie Limon Bazan<\/p>\n
Don\u2019t overlook this one. The State Board of Education sets curriculum standards and approves textbooks for every public school in Texas \u2014 shaping how history, science and health are taught for years to come. Bush and Bazan are competing to replace retiring incumbent Rebecca Bell-Metereau in this Central Texas district covering parts of the Austin-San Antonio corridor.<\/p>\n
Local Races: Central TexasMcLennan County \u2013 Justice of the Peace, Precinct 5 (Democratic Runoff)<\/p>\n
Incumbent LucyAnn Sanchez-Miramontez vs. Leslie Edwards<\/p>\n
This \u201cpeople\u2019s court\u201d handles evictions, small claims and traffic tickets \u2014 often the first contact residents have with the justice system. No Republican is currently filed for this seat.<\/p>\n
Bell County \u2013 Justice of the Peace, Precinct 2 (Republican Runoff)<\/p>\n
Richard Sapp vs. Michael Tice<\/p>\n
Republican voters in the Salado area will choose their JP candidate. No Democrat is currently running for this seat.<\/p>\n
Bell County \u2013 Justice of the Peace, Precinct 4, Place 2 (Democratic Runoff)<\/p>\n
La-Tasha Quarles vs. Jessica Gonzalez<\/p>\n
Covering the Killeen-Harker Heights area, Quarles \u2014 a veteran with a doctorate in social work \u2014 led the March primary. Gonzalez, a Killeen City Council member, finished second. The winner faces Republican Beatrice Cox in November.<\/p>\n
Coryell County \u2013 County Judge & Commissioner Races (Republican Runoffs)<\/p>\n
Three races are on the line in Coryell County:<\/p>\n
County Judge: Rob Erwin vs. incumbent Roger Miller \u2014 neither cleared 50% in a three-way March primary.Commissioner Precinct 2: Incumbent Scott Weddle vs. Tully Meyer.Commissioner Precinct 4: Ray Ashby vs. Justin D. Smith \u2014 both advancing out of a four-person field.Watch Live Election Night Coverage<\/p>\n
Polls close at 7 p.m. CT. Tune in for live team coverage starting at 4 p.m. and continuing through the evening as results come in. We\u2019ll have reporters live at both the Cornyn and Paxton campaign headquarters all night.<\/p>\n
Results are expected to begin rolling in after 8:30 p.m. CT.<\/p>\n
Copyright 2026 KWTX. All rights reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"WACO, Texas (KWTX) – Texas voters are heading back to the polls Tuesday for a slate of high-stakes…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":309401,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[111731,111725,111735,111734,111742,111741,111744,111745,111743,111747,111730,111728,111736,111748,111740,111746,111739,27,111738,111727,29,28,111737,111726,111729,111733,111732],"class_list":["post-309400","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-texas","tag-25-million-ad-spending-cornyn-paxton-runoff","tag-2026-texas-runoff-elections","tag-attorney-general-democratic-runoff-nathan-johnson-vs-joe-jaworski","tag-attorney-general-republican-runoff-mayes-middleton-vs-chip-roy","tag-bell-county-jp-precinct-4-place-2-democratic-runoff-quarles-vs-gonzalez","tag-bell-county-justice-of-the-peace-precinct-2-republican-runoff","tag-coryell-county-commissioner-runoffs-precinct-2-weddle-vs-meyer","tag-coryell-county-commissioner-runoffs-precinct-4-ashby-vs-justin-d-smith","tag-coryell-county-county-judge-republican-runoff-erwin-vs-roger-miller","tag-election-results-after-830-p-m-ct","tag-high-stakes-texas-runoff-elections-tuesday","tag-john-cornyn-ken-paxton-runoff-election","tag-lieutenant-governor-democratic-runoff-vikki-goodwin-vs-marcos-velez","tag-live-election-night-coverage-central-texas","tag-mclennan-county-justice-of-the-peace-precinct-5-democratic-runoff","tag-polls-close-7-p-m-ct-texas-runoff","tag-state-board-of-education-district-5-democratic-runoff-allison-bush-vs-stephanie-limon-bazan","tag-texas","tag-texas-court-of-criminal-appeals-place-3-gop-runoff-alison-fox-vs-thomas-smith","tag-texas-gop-senate-runoff-cornyn-vs-paxton","tag-texas-headlines","tag-texas-news","tag-texas-railroad-commission-republican-runoff-jim-wright-vs-bo-french","tag-texas-runoff-election-ballot-races","tag-trump-endorses-ken-paxton-texas-senate","tag-u-s-house-district-17-democratic-runoff-flores-vs-shepard","tag-winner-faces-democrat-james-talarico-in-november"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/309400","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=309400"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/309400\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/309401"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=309400"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=309400"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=309400"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}