Christian Menefee beats Al Green in Democratic primary runoff in new TX-18, according to AP

From Houston Public Media:

U.S. Rep. Christian Menefee beat U.S. Rep. Al Green in Tuesday’s Democratic primary runoff in Texas’ 18th Congressional District, according to a race call by the Associated Press.

According to early voting results released by Harris County, where the bulk of the newly redrawn 18th District is located, Menefee received 70.4% of nearly 24,000 votes cast. The district also includes parts of Brazoria and Fort Bend counties. A countywide technical problem in Fort Bend caused voting delays Tuesday.

Nonetheless, Menefee’s early voting lead in Harris County was enough for him to declare victory.

“Tonight belongs to the people of this district,” Menefee said in a Tuesday night statement. “You have shown up over and over, and every single time, you have chosen to fight for a better future for our communities. I do not take that for granted for one second. This is your victory, and I will spend every day in Washington making sure it means something.”

Green and Menefee were pitted against each other in a rare race between two sitting congressmen. The matchup was a result of the redrawn congressional maps approved by the Texas legislature last year at the behest of President Donald Trump. The left-leaning District 18 was redrawn to include portions of Green’s prior district, the 9th Congressional District, pitting Democrat against Democrat.

The 18th also is a district that has been through a tumultuous few years. Tuesday’s primary runoff was the district’s fourth election in seven months. The sudden death in March 2025 of U.S. Rep. Sylvester Turner, who succeeded the late U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, led to nearly a full year without congressional representation for the 18^th District.

Menefee won a January special election to fill the seat and was sworn in on Feb. 3.

Green, by contrast, has represented the 9^th Congressional District since 2005, though that district has been redrawn as well. His residence is currently in the 18^th District, prompting him to run in this race.

During the March 3 primary, two other names were on the ballot who drew nearly 10% of the vote: Amanda Edwards and Gretchen Brown. Edwards, who had initially run against Menefee in the special election, dropped her bid after the deadline to remove her name from the ballot.

Both staunch critics of Republicans, Green and Menefee have largely been contrasted with one another by their ages: Menefee is 38, and Green is 78. Green, though, has pushed back against critics who make note of his age.

The newly redrawn 18th District includes portions of Harris, Fort Bend and Brazoria counties. In the March 3 primary, Menefee led Harris County by nearly 10,000 votes; by contrast, Green led Fort Bend County by almost 8,000 votes.

Menefee will face Republican nominee Ronald Whitfield in the November general election.

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