Harris County Prosecutor Christian Menifee (D) won the special election runoff for the seat of the late Rep. Sylvester Turner (D-Texas), according to projections from Decision Desk Headquarters.
Menifee defeated former Houston City Council member Amanda Edwards (D) in Saturday’s runoff after being the top two vote-getters in the November primary.
The Lone Star State’s 18th Congressional District, which voted overwhelmingly blue in the 2024 presidential race, had long been expected to remain in Democratic hands, but the runoff prevented Democrats from adding seats to the House of Representatives for months.
Republicans currently hold a 218-213 majority, with four seats open. A win for Menifee would close that gap, at least temporarily.
After Turner’s death in March, sixteen candidates ran to fill the remainder of Turner’s term in the House, but no one received a majority of the vote. Turner, who was first elected to Congress in November 2024 and died last year, succeeded the late Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D) after her death in July.
Menifee will serve out the remainder of Turner’s term, but after last year’s redistricting, he will run again for a full term in March. Edwards and Rep. Al Green (D-Texas) have also filed to run in the primary.
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