A survey of likely primary voters by the University of Houston’s Hobby School of Public Affairs found a high number of voters in Harris County primary races remain undecided as election day nears. (Credit Getty Images)
Key Takeaways
- Annise Parker is leading in the Democratic primary for Harris County judge with 46% of the vote, followed by Letitia Plummer with 25%.
- Orlando Sanchez is leading a six-person field in the Republican primary for Harris County judge with 21% of the vote, followed by Marty Lancton with 10% and Aliza Dutt with 7%. More than half, 54%, are unsure.
- Abbie Kamin is leading in the Democratic primary for Harris County attorney with 26% of the vote, followed by Audrie Lawton Evans with 13% and 61% of likely voters are unsure.
- Mike Wolfe is leading in the Republican primary for Harris County clerk with 20% of the vote, followed by Lynda Sanchez with 14% and 66% of voters who are unsure.
- Jasmine Crockett (45%) leads James Talarico (43%) among Harris County voters in the Texas U.S. Senate Democratic primary, with 11% unsure.
- John Cornyn (32%) leads Ken Paxton (27%) and Wesley Hunt (25%) among Harris County voters in the Texas U.S. Senate Republican primary, with 14% unsure.
Former Houston Mayor Annise Parker is leading her closest challenger in the Democratic primary for Harris County judge by a margin of almost two-to-one, with the support of 46% of likely primary voters. Former Houston City Council member Letitia Plummer drew support from 25%.
Across the aisle, former Harris County Treasurer Orlando Sanchez is leading in the Republican primary for county judge with 21% of the vote, followed by Marty Lancton, head of the Houston Professional Fire Fighters Association, with 10% and Aliza Dutt, mayor of Piney Point Village, with 7%. More than half of voters, 54%, said they are unsure who they will support.
A survey of likely primary voters by the University of Houston’s Hobby School of Public Affairs found a high number of voters in Harris County primary races remain undecided as election day nears. Early voting begins Feb. 17, with the primary election on March 3 and the runoff on May 26.
Renée Cross, researcher and senior executive director of the Hobby School, said Parker’s years of public service helped to position her as the frontrunner, with six out of 10 voters saying they have a favorable impression of the former mayor and just 20% saying they don’t know enough about her to have an opinion.
“Parker hasn’t held elective office in more than a decade, but her years as an at-large city council member, city controller and mayor, and her work in advocacy politics before and after she left office, cemented her reputation among Democratic voters,” Cross said. “We found that voters who are familiar with Plummer have favorable views, but slightly more than half said they don’t know enough about her to have an opinion.”
In the special election for Harris County attorney, City Council member Abbie Kamin is leading Audrie Lawton Evans in the Democratic primary, 26% to 13%, while 61% of likely voters are unsure. Republican Jacqueline Lucci Smith is running unopposed in that race.
In the Republican primary for Harris County clerk, Mike Wolfe, a former Harris County Department of Education trustee, is leading with 20% of the vote, followed by business owner Lynda Sanchez with 14%. Two-thirds of voters are unsure. The winner will face incumbent Democrat Teneshia Hudspeth.
Meanwhile, three out of four Republican primary voters say they are undecided in the race for Harris County treasurer, while 13% support Republican consultant Marc Cowart and 12% support Haley Lane Hagan.
Mark P. Jones, political science fellow at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy and senior research fellow at the Hobby School, said the high number of voters who aren’t yet sure of their vote intention means a number of county races will go down to the wire.
“We found that more than half of Republican primary voters had not yet decided which candidate to support in these county offices,” he said. “The numbers are almost as high in the Democratic primary once you get beyond the county judge race. It isn’t that voters have a negative view of the candidates but that they simply don’t know much about them.”
The survey also found a tight contest in Harris County for the state’s closely watched race for U.S. Senate. Incumbent Sen. John Cornyn is leading in the county’s GOP primary, with 32% support, while 27% support Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and 25% support U.S. Rep. Wesley Hunt.
On the Democratic side, 45% of Harris County primary voters support U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett for the senate seat, while 43% support state Sen. James Talarico.
“It isn’t that voters have a negative view of the candidates but that they simply don’t know much about them.”
—Mark P. Jones, senior research fellow at the Hobby School, on the high number of undecided voters
Among the report’s other findings include:
- Precinct 1 Commissioner Rodney Ellis is the most popular Democratic officeholder in Harris County, with a net favorability rating of 50%, followed by Precinct 2 Commissioner Adrian Garcia and Sheriff Ed Gonzalez, both at 45%. County Judge Lina Hidalgo has a net favorability rating of 30%, and Precinct 4 Commissioner Lesley Briones is at 28%.
- In the race for Harris County Democratic chair, Traci Gibson is leading with 15% of the vote, followed by Mike Doyle with 8%. Seventy-seven percent of likely voters are unsure.
- In the race for county Republican chair, Cindy Siegel is leading with 18% of the vote, followed by Don Hooper with 11% and Michelle Bouchard with 7%. Sixty-four percent are unsure.
The full report is available on the Hobby School website. The respective Democratic and Republican primary surveys were fielded Feb. 3-10, and each included 2,000 respondents, with a margin of error of +/- 2.19%.
Additional 2026 primary reports on the U.S. Senate, statewide races and Houston-area Republican and Democratic congressional races are available on the Hobby School website.