Texas local trial court judicial elections, 2020

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Main articles: State judicial elections, 2020 and Local trial court judicial elections, 2020

Ballotpedia provides comprehensive coverage of elections in America's 100 largest cities by population. This coverage extends to every office on the ballot for residents of these cities, including local trial court judges. In 2020, Ballotpedia covered the following local elections in this state:

  • Arlington, Texas - City council
  • Austin, Texas - City council
  • Corpus Christi, Texas - Mayor, city council
  • El Paso, Texas - Mayor, city representatives, municipal court judgeships
  • Garland, Texas - City council
  • Houston, Texas - City council
  • Irving, Texas - Mayor, city council
  • Laredo, Texas - City council
  • Lubbock, Texas - Mayor, city council, municipal court judge
  • Bexar County, Texas - County commissioners, sheriff, tax assessor-collector, justice of the peace, constables, water control and improvement district board, multiple judgeships
  • Collin County, Texas - County commissioners, sheriff, tax assessor-collector, constables, and district court judgeships
  • Dallas County, Texas - County commissioners, sheriff, tax assessor-collector, district court judgeships
  • Denton County, Texas - County commissioners, tax collector-assessor, sheriff, constables, multiple judgeships
  • El Paso County, Texas - County commissioners, tax assessor-collector, sheriff, county attorney, district attorney, constables, multiple judgeships
  • Fort Bend County, Texas - Sheriff, county commissioners, county attorney, tax assessor-collector, justices of the peace, constables, multiple judgeships
  • Harris County, Texas - County commissioners, sheriff, county court at law, county attorney, county clerk, county department of education, district attorney, tax assessor-collector, justice of the peace, constable, special districts, multiple judgeships
  • Lubbock County, Texas - County commissioners, sheriff, tax assessor-collector, constables, special districts, multiple judgeships
  • Nueces County, Texas - County commissioners, sheriff, county attorney, county district attorney, tax assessor-collector, justices of the peace, constables, special districts, multiple judgeships
  • Tarrant County, Texas - County commissioners, sheriff, tax assessor-collector, constables, multiple judgeships
  • Travis County, Texas - County commissioners, sheriff, county court at law, county commissioners court (special), county attorney, district attorney, tax assessor-collector, constables, special districts, multiple judgeships
  • Webb County, Texas - County commissioners, sheriff, district attorney, county attorney, tax assessor-collector, constables, special districts, multiple judgeships
  • Williamson County, Texas - County commissioners, sheriff, county attorney, county district attorney, tax assessor-collector, constables, multiple judgeships

If the above list includes local trial court judgeships, click the links for more information about the elections. Click here to learn more about how the judges in this state are selected. Ballotpedia did not cover all local trial court judicial elections in this state in 2020. Please consider donating to Ballotpedia to help us expand our coverage of these elections.

Election rules

Primary election

Partisan primaries are held if even one candidate files for a position. To advance to the general election, a candidate must win a majority (over 50 percent) of the vote. If no candidate in a race wins the majority—as in cases where more than two candidates are competing for a seat—a runoff election is held between the top two candidates.[1][2]

Though Texas officially has closed primaries (requiring that voters declare party affiliation in advance in order to participate), the state's primaries are functionally open; any registered voter may vote in any single party's primary if he or she has not voted in the primary of another party. The elections are closed, however, in that voters may not participate in the proceedings (a runoff primary or a convention) of another party thereafter.[1]

General election

The winning candidates from each major party's primary, as well as any additional minor party candidates, compete in a general election on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November. If a candidate was unopposed in the general election, that candidate's name will still appear on the general election ballot.[1][3]

Judicial selection

Texas District Court

See also: Partisan election of judges

The judges of the Texas District Courts are chosen in partisan elections. They serve four-year terms, after which they must run for re-election if they wish to continue serving.[4]

Though Texas is home to more than 400 district courts, the courts are grouped into nine administrative judicial regions. Each region is overseen by a presiding judge who is appointed by the governor to a four-year term. According to the state courts website, the presiding judge may be a "regular elected or retired district judge, a former judge with at least 12 years of service as a district judge, or a retired appellate judge with judicial experience on a district court."[5]

Qualifications
To serve on the district courts, a judge must be:

  • a U.S. citizen;
  • a resident of Texas;
  • licensed to practice law in the state;
  • between the ages of 25 and 75;*[6]
  • a practicing lawyer and/or state judge for at least four years; and
  • a resident of his or her respective judicial district for at least two years.[4]

*While no judge older than 74 may run for office, sitting judges who turn 75 are permitted to continue serving until their term expires.[4]

Texas County Court

See also: Partisan election of judges

Judges of the county courts are elected in partisan elections by the county they serve and serve four-year terms, with vacancies filled by a vote of the county commissioners.[7]

Qualifications
To serve on a county court, a judge must:[7]

  • be at least 25 years old;
  • be a resident of his or her respective county for at least two years; and
  • have practiced law or served as a judge for at least four years preceding the election.

Additional elections

See also: Texas elections, 2020

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Pivot Counties

See also: Pivot Counties by state

One of 254 Texas counties—0.4 percent—is a Pivot County. Pivot Counties are counties that voted for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012 and for Donald Trump (R) in 2016. Altogether, the nation had 206 Pivot Counties, with most being concentrated in upper midwestern and northeastern states.

Counties won by Trump in 2016 and Obama in 2012 and 2008
County Trump margin of victory in 2016 Obama margin of victory in 2012 Obama margin of victory in 2008
Jefferson County, Texas 0.48% 1.61% 2.25%

In the 2016 presidential election, Donald Trump (R) won Texas with 52.2 percent of the vote. Hillary Clinton (D) received 43.2 percent. In presidential elections between 1900 and 2016, Texas cast votes for the winning presidential candidate 66.7 percent of the time. In that same time frame, Texas supported Democratic candidates slightly more often than Republicans, 53.3 to 46.7 percent. The state, however, favored Republicans in every presidential election between 2000 and 2016.

Presidential results by legislative district

The following table details results of the 2012 and 2016 presidential elections by state House districts in Texas. Click [show] to expand the table. The "Obama," "Romney," "Clinton," and "Trump" columns describe the percent of the vote each presidential candidate received in the district. The "2012 Margin" and "2016 Margin" columns describe the margin of victory between the two presidential candidates in those years. The "Party Control" column notes which party held that seat heading into the 2018 general election. Data on the results of the 2012 and 2016 presidential elections broken down by state legislative districts was compiled by Daily Kos.[8][9]

In 2012, Barack Obama (D) won 54 out of 150 state House districts in Texas with an average margin of victory of 37.4 points. In 2016, Hillary Clinton (D) won 65 out of 150 state House districts in Texas with an average margin of victory of 36.4 points. Clinton won 10 districts controlled by Republicans heading into the 2018 elections.
In 2012, Mitt Romney (R) won 96 out of 150 state House districts in Texas with an average margin of victory of 36.2 points. In 2016, Donald Trump (R) won 85 out of 150 state House districts in Texas with an average margin of victory of 34.5 points.


See also

Local courts Texas Other local coverage
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Footnotes