The Texas Congressional Shake-up

When State Rep. James Talarico announced he was entering the Democratic Senate primary, it was the latest shake-up to an already chaotic Texas political year. It was just a few months ago when word started to spread that the Trump White House was seriously considering redistricting overhauls in states like Texas to potentially thwart losing the House.

That whole process, which culminated with Republicans passing a new redistricting bill that could potentially net them five more Republican seats, has now left many candidates in a peculiar game of political musical chairs. Some members of congress, like Greg Casar, will be running in a different district than the ones they were originally elected to represent.

With Casar now running in TX-37, that leaves Lloyd Doggett effectively retired. While that was not a foregone conclusion, Texas Democrats can at least avoid a costly primary and a generational battle.

In North Texas, Democrats are still waiting to hear the plans for a trio of congressmembers: Marc Veasey, Julie Johnson, and Jasmine Crockett. Veasey and Johnson’s districts have been totally redrawn, while Crockett’s remains mostly similar (though her current residence was drawn out).

But up north, it’s been business (almost) as usual for candidate Evan Hunt, a veteran and combat aviator who has been running for TX-3 for several months (and well before any whiff of redistricting or quorum breaks was on the horizon). Texas Signal spoke with Hunt about what it’s like to be running for a congressional seat only to see it change midway during the campaign. The biggest change to TX-3 is that it now stretches to Sulphur Springs and has lost Frisco, a rapidly growing suburb north of Dallas.

Hunt called the whole redistricting process “frustrating and clearly an abuse of power.” Losing Frisco was particularly stinging since he and his team had spent considerable time there.

But, Hunt notes that the very act of redistricting, and especially chopping up Collin County, shows Republicans were worried about losing the U.S. House in next year’s midterm elections. TX-3 has not been represented by a Democrat since the 1960’s, but their current Rep. Keith Self has faced raucous town halls (when he is holding them at all).

According to Hunt, a district like TX-3 could be ripe for a flip under the right circumstances. “At the end of the day they are redistricting because there was acknowledgment that [they] could lose the house in Texas,” he told Signal.

For now, Hunt remains focused on his campaign. And the redistricting saga has fired up Hunt even more. “The whole reason I am running is because of moves like this,” said Hunt.

Redistricting has also opened the door for candidates to toss their hat into the new rings, so to speak. Tejano musician Bobby Pulido recently announced he would be running as a Democrat in TX-15. A few cycles ago the district was considered one of the only competitive parts of the Texas congressional map. Republican Monica de la Cruz has represented it since 2023 (after it went through a redistricting shake-up after the 2020 census). The district will once again change and remains solidly Republican, but Pulido believes he has a compelling message for the community.

Another new (but familiar) entry into the congressional landscape is John Lira. A former Marine, Lira previously ran for Congress in 2022 in TX-23 against Tony Gonzales. Now he’s running in TX-35 (the seat Casar opted not to run for) and launching his campaign September 30. Running for office was far from Lira’s mind just a few weeks ago. In fact, he had relocated to San Antonio and was preparing to start a new role with a veteran’s nonprofit, an opportunity that he said was practically written for him.

But, Lira decided to dip back into politics. “I can’t stand idly by,” Lira told Texas Signal. He described the redistricting process as “the big steal of 2025” and that “no Texan I know asked for redistricting.”

As he prepares to launch his campaign, Lira is cognizant of the uphill congressional terrain. But, he’s used to challenges. “I served my country once in uniform and now I’m ready to serve again.”

Both Hunt and Lira are looking ahead to the March primary in Texas. But a nearer deadline looms for a congressional race in Houston: TX-18. The race to fill the seat left vacant by the death of Sylvester Turner is slated for November (and a run-off is likely). There are multiple high-profile candidates including current Harris County Attorney Christian Menefee, former Councilwoman Amanda Edwards and State Rep. Jolanda Jones. The winner will serve out the remainder of Turner’s term. And then in March there’s a whole new primary for a re-drawn TX-18 that might include Congressman Al Green, redistricted out of his current district.

Even as the challenges to the redistricting bill persist, the game of congressional musical chairs continues.