Texas Attorney General election, 2022
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Texas Attorney General |
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Democratic primary Democratic primary runoff Republican primary Republican primary runoff General election |
Election details |
Filing deadline: December 13, 2021 |
Primary: March 1, 2022 Primary runoff: May 24, 2022 General: November 8, 2022 Pre-election incumbent(s): Ken Paxton (Republican) |
How to vote |
Poll times: 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Voting in Texas |
Ballotpedia analysis |
Federal and state primary competitiveness State executive elections in 2022 Impact of term limits in 2022 State government trifectas State government triplexes Ballotpedia's Election Analysis Hub, 2022 |
Texas executive elections |
Governor Lieutenant Governor |
Texas held an election for attorney general on November 8, 2022. The primary was scheduled for March 1, 2022, and a primary runoff was scheduled for May 24, 2022. The filing deadline was December 13, 2021. This was one of 30 elections for attorney general taking place in 2022. All 50 states have an attorney general who serves as the state's chief legal officer, responsible for enforcing state law and offering the state government advice on legal matters. In 43 states, the office was, at the time of the 2022 elections, an elected post. At the time of the 2022 elections, there were 27 Republican attorneys general and 23 Democratic attorneys general. Click here for an overview of all 30 attorney general elections that took place in 2022. A state government triplex refers to a situation where the governor, attorney general, and secretary of state are all members of the same political party. Heading into the 2022 elections, there were 23 Republican triplexes, 18 Democratic triplexes, and nine divided governments where neither party held triplex control.
In September 2022, Sabato's Crystal Ball released an analysis of state attorney general election competitiveness. Texas' attorney general election was rated as at least somewhat competitive. Click here to read the analysis.[1]
Incumbent Ken Paxton won election in the general election for Attorney General of Texas.
For more information about the primaries in this election, click on the links below:
- Texas Attorney General election, 2022 (May 24 Democratic primary runoff)
- Texas Attorney General election, 2022 (March 1 Democratic primary)
- Texas Attorney General election, 2022 (May 24 Republican primary runoff)
- Texas Attorney General election, 2022 (March 1 Republican primary)
Candidates and election results
General election
General election for Attorney General of Texas
Incumbent Ken Paxton defeated Rochelle Garza and Mark Ash in the general election for Attorney General of Texas on November 8, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
✔ | ![]() | Ken Paxton (R) | 53.4 | 4,278,986 |
![]() | Rochelle Garza (D) ![]() | 43.7 | 3,497,267 | |
![]() | Mark Ash (L) | 2.9 | 233,750 |
Total votes: 8,010,003 | ||||
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Democratic primary runoff election
Democratic primary runoff for Attorney General of Texas
Rochelle Garza defeated Joe Jaworski in the Democratic primary runoff for Attorney General of Texas on May 24, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
✔ | ![]() | Rochelle Garza ![]() | 62.7 | 305,168 |
![]() | Joe Jaworski ![]() | 37.3 | 181,744 |
Total votes: 486,912 | ||||
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Republican primary runoff election
Republican primary runoff for Attorney General of Texas
Incumbent Ken Paxton defeated George P. Bush in the Republican primary runoff for Attorney General of Texas on May 24, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
✔ | ![]() | Ken Paxton | 68.0 | 633,223 |
![]() | George P. Bush | 32.0 | 298,577 |
Total votes: 931,800 | ||||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Attorney General of Texas
Rochelle Garza and Joe Jaworski advanced to a runoff. They defeated Lee Merritt, Mike Fields, and S. T-Bone Raynor in the Democratic primary for Attorney General of Texas on March 1, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
✔ | ![]() | Rochelle Garza ![]() | 43.0 | 438,134 |
✔ | ![]() | Joe Jaworski ![]() | 19.8 | 202,140 |
Lee Merritt | 19.4 | 198,108 | ||
![]() | Mike Fields ![]() | 12.3 | 125,373 | |
![]() | S. T-Bone Raynor | 5.5 | 55,944 |
Total votes: 1,019,699 | ||||
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Republican primary election
Republican primary for Attorney General of Texas
Incumbent Ken Paxton and George P. Bush advanced to a runoff. They defeated Eva Guzman and Louis B. Gohmert Jr. in the Republican primary for Attorney General of Texas on March 1, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
✔ | ![]() | Ken Paxton | 42.7 | 823,199 |
✔ | ![]() | George P. Bush | 22.8 | 439,240 |
![]() | Eva Guzman ![]() | 17.5 | 337,761 | |
![]() | Louis B. Gohmert Jr. | 17.0 | 327,257 |
Total votes: 1,927,457 | ||||
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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. | ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Matt Krause (R)
Libertarian convention
Libertarian convention for Attorney General of Texas
Mark Ash advanced from the Libertarian convention for Attorney General of Texas on April 10, 2022.
Candidate | ||
✔ | ![]() | Mark Ash (L) |
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Campaign data
Campaign finance
General election
Democratic primary
Republican primary
Voting information
- See also: Voting in Texas
Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey responses
Ballotpedia asks all federal, state, and local candidates to complete a survey and share what motivates them on political and personal levels. The section below shows responses from candidates in this race who completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
Survey responses from candidates in this race
Click on a candidate's name to visit their Ballotpedia page.
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.
Collapse all
|![Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Rochelle_Garza1.jpg](https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Rochelle_Garza1.jpg)
Rochelle Garza (D)
Reproductive Rights - Abortion care is health care, and health care is a human right. Reproductive choice is a moral imperative and an issue of racial, economic, and gender justice. I’m committed to restoring abortion access in Texas and defending the rights of women and pregnant people whenever they’re threatened.
Consumer protection - As Texas Attorney General, I will make consumer protection a top priority during my administration and investigate what went wrong with our power grid and ensure it never happens again.
![Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Rochelle_Garza1.jpg](https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Rochelle_Garza1.jpg)
Rochelle Garza (D)
Worker’s Rights – Workers’ rights are civil rights. We need to protect workers from bad actors, including wage theft, status misclassification that wrongfully denies benefits, health and COVID-19 violations. Supporting unions, including workers’ ability to unionize, will be essential to a more just workplace for all Texans.
Funding Public Schools – We need to reverse the trend of disinvesting in our public schools and give our students and teachers the resources they need to be successful.
Legalizing Cannabis – I support legalizing the sale and use of recreational cannabis and ending the prejudicial prosecution of Black and brown Texans on criminal possession charges. We must also expunge the criminal records of anyone who was convicted on personal possession charges to bring more equity to our criminal justice system.
LGBTQ+ – While we have made progress in the fight for equality in Texas, a lot remains to be done. In the recent Texas legislative session, we saw Republicans introduce more anti-LGBTQ+ bills than any other state. We need to prioritize civil rights and that includes protecting equality.![Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Rochelle_Garza1.jpg](https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Rochelle_Garza1.jpg)
Rochelle Garza (D)
Past elections
2018
- See also: Texas Attorney General election, 2018
General election
General election for Attorney General of Texas
Incumbent Ken Paxton defeated Justin Nelson and Michael Ray Harris in the general election for Attorney General of Texas on November 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
✔ | ![]() | Ken Paxton (R) | 50.6 | 4,193,207 |
![]() | Justin Nelson (D) | 47.0 | 3,898,098 | |
![]() | Michael Ray Harris (L) | 2.4 | 201,310 |
Total votes: 8,292,615 (100.00% precincts reporting) | ||||
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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 Attorney General of Texas
Justin Nelson advanced from the Democratic primary for Attorney General of Texas on March 6, 2018.
Candidate | ||
✔ | ![]() | Justin Nelson |
![]() | ||||
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 Attorney General of Texas
Incumbent Ken Paxton advanced from the Republican primary for Attorney General of Texas on March 6, 2018.
Candidate | ||
✔ | ![]() | Ken Paxton |
![]() | ||||
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. |
Libertarian convention
Libertarian convention for Attorney General of Texas
Michael Ray Harris defeated Jamar Osborne in the Libertarian convention for Attorney General of Texas on April 15, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
✔ | ![]() | Michael Ray Harris (L) | 90.4 | 236 |
![]() | Jamar Osborne (L) | 9.6 | 25 |
Total votes: 261 | ||||
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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. |
2014
- See also: Texas attorney general election, 2014
Republican Ken Paxton won election on November 4, 2014.
Attorney General of Texas, 2014 | ||||
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Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
Republican | ![]() |
58.8% | 2,742,646 | |
Democrat | Sam Houston | 38% | 1,773,108 | |
Libertarian | Jamie Balagia | 2.5% | 118,186 | |
Green | Jamar Osborne | 0.6% | 29,590 | |
Total Votes | 4,663,530 | |||
Election results via Texas Secretary of State |
Election analysis
Click the tabs below to view information about demographics, past elections, and partisan control of the state.
- Presidential elections - Information about presidential elections in the state.
- Statewide elections - Information about recent U.S. Senate and gubernatorial elections in the state.
- State partisanship - The partisan makeup of the state's congressional delegation and state government.
- Demographics - Information about the state's demographics and how they compare to the country as a whole.
Presidential elections
Cook PVI by congressional district
2020 presidential results by 2022 congressional district lines
2020 presidential results in congressional districts based on 2022 district lines, Texas[2] | ||||
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District | Joe Biden ![]() |
Donald Trump ![]() | ||
Texas' 1st | 26.5% | 72.4% | ||
Texas' 2nd | 37.9% | 60.7% | ||
Texas' 3rd | 42.0% | 56.4% | ||
Texas' 4th | 36.4% | 62.4% | ||
Texas' 5th | 38.2% | 60.6% | ||
Texas' 6th | 37.4% | 61.3% | ||
Texas' 7th | 64.2% | 34.5% | ||
Texas' 8th | 35.8% | 63.0% | ||
Texas' 9th | 76.2% | 22.8% | ||
Texas' 10th | 39.8% | 58.6% | ||
Texas' 11th | 29.1% | 69.5% | ||
Texas' 12th | 40.1% | 58.3% | ||
Texas' 13th | 26.5% | 72.0% | ||
Texas' 14th | 35.0% | 63.6% | ||
Texas' 15th | 48.1% | 51.0% | ||
Texas' 16th | 67.0% | 31.5% | ||
Texas' 17th | 38.0% | 60.5% | ||
Texas' 18th | 73.6% | 25.1% | ||
Texas' 19th | 26.2% | 72.4% | ||
Texas' 20th | 65.8% | 32.7% | ||
Texas' 21st | 39.4% | 59.1% | ||
Texas' 22nd | 41.3% | 57.4% | ||
Texas' 23rd | 45.8% | 52.9% | ||
Texas' 24th | 43.0% | 55.4% | ||
Texas' 25th | 33.8% | 64.9% | ||
Texas' 26th | 40.0% | 58.6% | ||
Texas' 27th | 38.1% | 60.6% | ||
Texas' 28th | 52.9% | 45.9% | ||
Texas' 29th | 67.8% | 31.0% | ||
Texas' 30th | 77.8% | 21.0% | ||
Texas' 31st | 39.0% | 59.2% | ||
Texas' 32nd | 65.7% | 32.7% | ||
Texas' 33rd | 74.2% | 24.4% | ||
Texas' 34th | 57.3% | 41.8% | ||
Texas' 35th | 71.7% | 26.5% | ||
Texas' 36th | 33.6% | 65.2% | ||
Texas' 37th | 75.5% | 22.7% | ||
Texas' 38th | 40.2% | 58.4% |
2012-2020
How a state's counties vote in a presidential election and the size of those counties can provide additional insights into election outcomes at other levels of government including statewide and congressional races. Below, four categories are used to describe each county's voting pattern over the 2012, 2016, and 2020 presidential elections: Solid, Trending, Battleground, and New. Click [show] on the table below for examples:
County-level voting pattern categories | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Democratic | |||||||
Status | 2012 | 2016 | 2020 | ||||
Solid Democratic | D | D | D | ||||
Trending Democratic | R | D | D | ||||
Battleground Democratic | D | R | D | ||||
New Democratic | R | R | D | ||||
Republican | |||||||
Status | 2012 | 2016 | 2020 | ||||
Solid Republican | R | R | R | ||||
Trending Republican | D | R | R | ||||
Battleground Republican | R | D | R | ||||
New Republican | D | D | R |
Following the 2020 presidential election, 45.5% of Texans lived in one of the state's 18 Solid Democratic counties, which voted for the Democratic presidential candidate in every election from 2012 to 2020, and 40.1% lived in one of 223 Solid Republican counties. Overall, Texas was Solid Republican, having voted for Mitt Romney (R) in 2012, Donald Trump (R) in 2016, and Donald Trump (R) in 2020. Use the table below to view the total number of each type of county in Texas following the 2020 election as well as the overall percentage of the state population located in each county type.
Texas county-level statistics, 2020 | |||||||
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Solid Democratic | 18 | 45.5% | |||||
Solid Republican | 223 | 40.1% | |||||
New Democratic | 3 | 10.2% | |||||
Trending Democratic | 1 | 2.8% | |||||
Trending Republican | 1 | 0.9% | |||||
New Republican | 7 | 0.6% | |||||
Battleground Republican | 1 | <0.1% | |||||
Total voted Democratic | 22 | 58.5% | |||||
Total voted Republican | 232 | 41.5% |
Historical voting trends
Texas presidential election results (1900-2020)
- 16 Democratic wins
- 15 Republican wins
Year | 1900 | 1904 | 1908 | 1912 | 1916 | 1920 | 1924 | 1928 | 1932 | 1936 | 1940 | 1944 | 1948 | 1952 | 1956 | 1960 | 1964 | 1968 | 1972 | 1976 | 1980 | 1984 | 1988 | 1992 | 1996 | 2000 | 2004 | 2008 | 2012 | 2016 | 2020 |
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Winning Party | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | R | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | D | D | D | R | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R |
Statewide elections
This section details the results of the five most recent U.S. Senate and gubernatorial elections held in the state.
U.S. Senate elections
The table below details the vote in the five most recent U.S. Senate races in Texas.
U.S. Senate election results in Texas | ||
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Race | Winner | Runner up |
2020 | 53.5%![]() |
43.9%![]() |
2018 | 50.9%![]() |
48.3%![]() |
2014 | 61.6%![]() |
34.4%![]() |
2012 | 56.5%![]() |
40.7%![]() |
2008 | 54.8%![]() |
42.8%![]() |
Average | 55.5 | 42.0 |
Gubernatorial elections
- See also: Governor of Texas
The table below details the vote in the five most recent gubernatorial elections in Texas.
Gubernatorial election results in Texas | ||
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Race | Winner | Runner up |
2018 | 55.8%![]() |
42.5%![]() |
2014 | 59.3%![]() |
38.9%![]() |
2010 | 55.0%![]() |
42.3%![]() |
2006 | 39.0%![]() |
29.8%![]() |
2002 | 57.8%![]() |
40.0%![]() |
Average | 53.4 | 38.7 |
State partisanship
Congressional delegation
The table below displays the partisan composition of Texas' congressional delegation as of November 2022.
Congressional Partisan Breakdown from Texas, November 2022 | |||
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Party | U.S. Senate | U.S. House | Total |
Democratic | 0 | 12 | 12 |
Republican | 2 | 24 | 26 |
Independent | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Vacancies | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Total | 2 | 36 | 38 |
State executive
The table below displays the officeholders in Texas' top four state executive offices as of November 2022.
State executive officials in Texas, November 2022 | |
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Office | Officeholder |
Governor | ![]() |
Lieutenant Governor | ![]() |
Secretary of State | ![]() |
Attorney General | ![]() |
State legislature
The tables below highlight the partisan composition of the Texas State Legislature as of November 2022.
Texas State Senate
Party | As of November 2022 | |
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Democratic Party | 13 | |
Republican Party | 18 | |
Vacancies | 0 | |
Total | 31 |
Texas House of Representatives
Party | As of November 2022 | |
---|---|---|
Democratic Party | 65 | |
Republican Party | 83 | |
Vacancies | 2 | |
Total | 150 |
Trifecta control
As of November 2022, Texas was a Republican trifecta, with majorities in both chambers of the state legislature and control of the governorship. The table below displays the historical trifecta status of the state.
Texas Party Control: 1992-2022
Three years of Democratic trifectas • Twenty years of Republican trifectas
Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.
Year | 92 | 93 | 94 | 95 | 96 | 97 | 98 | 99 | 00 | 01 | 02 | 03 | 04 | 05 | 06 | 07 | 08 | 09 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Governor | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R |
Senate | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R |
House | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R |
Demographics
The table below details demographic data in Texas and compares it to the broader United States as of 2019.
Demographic Data for Texas | ||
---|---|---|
Texas | Vereinigte Staaten | |
Population | 25,145,561 | 308,745,538 |
Land area (sq mi) | 261,266 | 3,531,905 |
Race and ethnicity** | ||
White | 74% | 72.5% |
Black/African American | 12.1% | 12.7% |
Asian | 4.8% | 5.5% |
Native American | 0.5% | 0.8% |
Pacific Islander | 0.1% | 0.2% |
Two or more | 2.7% | 3.3% |
Hispanic/Latino | 39.3% | 18% |
Bildung | ||
High school graduation rate | 83.7% | 88% |
College graduation rate | 29.9% | 32.1% |
Income | ||
Median household income | $61,874 | $62,843 |
Persons below poverty level | 14.7% | 13.4% |
Source: population provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "Decennial Census" (2010). Other figures provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2014-2019). | ||
**Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here. |
See also
Texas | State Executive Elections | News and Analysis |
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External links
Footnotes
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