Texas AFL-CIO COPE Announces 2026 Primary Election Endorsements
TEXAS – Today, the Texas AFL-CIO Committee on Political Education (COPE) announced their 2026 primary election endorsements following delegates voting at the 2026 COPE Convention in Georgetown, Texas.
“Our labor endorsements are more meaningful and powerful than ever,” said Texas AFL-CIO President Leonard Aguilar. “These candidates have proven to us that they have the backs of working people, and the Texas labor movement will have their backs in the March primary.”
No action means that a vote was taken and the voting body decided not to endorse a specific candidate, allowing union affiliates to endorse at-will in that race. If a race is not listed, there was no recommendation from the delegates.
Statewide Endorsements
U.S. Senate | No Action |
Governor | Gina Hinojosa (D) Member of TSEU (CWA 6186) |
Lieutenant Governor | Marcos Isaias Vélez (D) Assistant Director of USW District 13 |
Attorney General | Nathan Johnson (D) |
Comptroller of Public Accounts | Sarah Eckhardt (D) Member of TSEU (CWA 6186) |
Commissioner of General Land Office | Jose Loya (D) Staff representative for USW District 13, Veterans of Steel Coordinator |
Agriculture Commissioner | Clayton Tucker (D) |
Railroad Commissioner | Jon Rosenthal (D) |
Texas Supreme Court, Place 1 | Maggie Ellis (D) Member of AFSCME 1624 and TSEU (CWA 6186) |
Texas Supreme Court, Place 2 | Chari Kelly (D) Member of AFSCME 1624 |
Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, Place 9 | Holly Taylor (D) Member of AFSCME Texas Retiree Chapter 12 |
15th Court of Appeals, Place 3 | Marc Meyer (D) Retired member of IAFF 341 |
Congressional Races
U.S. House, District 1 | Yolanda Prince (D) |
U.S. House, District 2 | Shaun Finnie (D) |
U.S. House, District 5 | Chelsey Alexandra Hockett (D) |
U.S. House, District 7 | Lizzie Pannill Fletcher (D), incumbent |
U.S. House, District 9 | Todd Ivey (D) |
U.S. House, District 10 | Caitlyn Rourk (D) |
U.S. House, District 13 | Mark Nair (D) |
U.S. House, District 15 | No Action |
U.S. House, District 16 | Veronica Escobar (D), incumbent |
U.S. House, District 17 | Milah Flores (D) |
U.S. House, District 18 | No Action |
U.S. House, District 19 | Kyle Rable (D) Member of TSEU (CWA 6186) |
U.S. House, District 20 | Joaquin Castro (D), incumbent |
U.S. House, District 21 | Dr. Kristin Hook (D) |
U.S. House, District 22 | Marquette Greene-Scott (D) |
U.S. House, District 23 | Katy Padilla Stout (D) Member of Northside AFT |
U.S. House, District 24 | Kevin Burge (D) |
U.S. House, District 26 | Ernest Lineberger (D) |
U.S. House, District 27 | Tanya Lloyd (D) Member of Texas AFT |
U.S. House, District 29 | No Action |
U.S. House, District 30 | Frederick D. Haynes III (D) |
U.S. House, District 31
| Justin Early (D) Stuart Whitlow (D) (dual endorsement) |
U.S. House, District 33 | No Action |
U.S. House, District 34 | No Action |
U.S. House, District 35
| Johnny Garcia (D) John Lira (D) (dual endorsement) |
U.S. House, District 36 | Doug Alan Rogers (D) |
U.S. House, District 37 | Greg Casar (D) Member of AFSCME 1624 |
U.S. House, District 38 | Marvalette Hunter (D) |
Texas Senate Races
Texas Senate, District 3 | Trent Ashby (R) |
Texas Senate, District 4 | Brett Ligon (R) |
Texas Senate, District 9 | Taylor Rehmet (D) President of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) Texas State Council |
Texas Senate, District 19 | Roland Gutierrez (D), incumbent Member of TSEU (CWA 6186) |
Texas Senate, District 21 | No Action |
Texas Senate, District 26 | José Menéndez (D), incumbent Member of TSEU (CWA 6186) |
Texas House Races
Texas House, District 1 | Sean Huffman (D) |
Texas House, District 21 | Ray Callas (R) |
Texas House, District 22 | Christian Manuel (D), incumbent |
Texas House, District 26 | Eliz Markowitz (D) |
Texas House, District 27 | Ron Reynolds (D), incumbent Member of TSEU (CWA 6186) |
Texas House, District 28 | Sandy Ibanez (D) Member of Fort Bend AFT |
Texas House, District 31 | No Action |
Texas House, District 37 | No Action |
Texas House, District 38 | Erin Gamez (D), incumbent Member of TSEU (CWA 6186) |
Texas House, District 41 | No Action |
Texas House, District 45 | Erin Zwiener (D), incumbent Member of TSEU (CWA 6186) |
Texas House, District 46 | Sheryl Cole (D), incumbent |
Texas House, District 47 | Pooja Sethi (D) Member of TSEU (CWA 6186) |
Texas House, District 48 | Donna Howard (D), incumbent Member of TSEU (CWA 6186) |
Texas House, District 49 | Montserrat Garibay (D) Former Texas AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer; Member of Education Austin |
Texas House, District 50 | Jeremy Hendricks (D) Assistant Business Manager, SWLDC, LIUNA |
Texas House, District 51 | Lulu Flores (D), incumbent Member of TSEU (CWA 6186) |
Texas House, District 52 | Christopher Jimenez (D) |
Texas House, District 54 | Dawn Richardson (D) |
Texas House, District 55 | Amelia Rabroker (D) |
Texas House, District 56 | Ashley Bean Thornton (D) |
Texas House, District 58 | Mary Wells (R) |
Texas House, District 64 | Christie Wood (D) Former member of AFM |
Texas House, District 65 | Detrick Deburr (D) Former member of UAW |
Texas House, District 70 | Mihaela Plesa (D), incumbent Member of TSEU (CWA 6186) |
Texas House, District 72 | No Action |
Texas House, District 74 | Eddie Morales Jr. (D), incumbent |
Texas House, District 76 | Suleman Lalani (D), incumbent |
Texas House, District 77 | Vince Perez (D), incumbent |
Texas House, District 78 | Joe Moody (D), incumbent Member of TSEU (CWA 6186) |
Texas House, District 79 | Claudia Ordaz (D), incumbent |
Texas House, District 86 | Cullin Knutson (D) |
Texas House, District 87 | Diana Loya (D) |
Texas House, District 92 | Salman Bhojani (D), incumbent |
Texas House, District 94 | Katie O'Brien Duzan (D) |
Texas House, District 97 | Diane Symons (D) |
Texas House, District 100 | Venton Jones (D), incumbent Member of TSEU (CWA 6186) |
Texas House, District 101 | Chris Turner (D), incumbent |
Texas House, District 102 | Ana-Maria Rodriguez Ramos (D), incumbent Member of TSEU (CWA 6186) |
Texas House, District 104 | Jessica Gonzalez (D), incumbent Member of TSEU (CWA 6186) |
Texas House, District 107 | Linda Garcia (D), incumbent |
Texas House, District 108 | Allison Mitchell (D) |
Texas House, District 112 | Zach Herbert (D) |
Texas House, District 115 | Cassandra Hernandez (D), incumbent Member of TSEU (CWA 6186) |
Texas House, District 116 | Trey Martinez Fischer (D), incumbent Member of TSEU (CWA 6186) |
Texas House, District 117 | Robert Mihara (D) |
Texas House, District 118 | Kristian Carranza (D) |
Texas House, District 119 | Ryan Ayala (D) |
Texas House, District 120 | Jordan Brown (D) Member of Northside AFT |
Texas House, District 121 | Zack Dunn (D) |
Texas House, District 122 | No Action |
Texas House, District 123 | Diego Bernal (D), incumbent Member of TSEU (CWA 6186) |
Texas House, District 124 | Josey Garcia (D), incumbent |
Texas House, District 125 | Adrian Reyna (D) Member of AFT 67 |
Texas House, District 130 | Brett Robinson (D) |
Texas House, District 131 | Lawrence Allen, Jr. (D) |
Texas House, District 134 | Ann Johnson (D), incumbent |
Texas House, District 135 | Odus Evbagharu (D) |
Texas House, District 136 | John Bucy III (D), incumbent Member of TSEU (CWA 6186) |
Texas House, District 137 | Gene Wu (D), incumbent Member of TSEU (CWA 6186) |
Texas House, District 139 | Charlene Ward Johnson (D), incumbent |
Texas House, District 140 | Armando Walle (D), incumbent Member of TSEU (CWA 6186) |
Texas House, District 141 | Senfronia Thompson (D), incumbent Member of TSEU (CWA 6186) |
Texas House, District 142 | Danyahel (Danny) Norris (D) Member of AFSCME HOPE 123 |
Texas House, District 143 | Ana Hernandez (D), incumbent Member of TSEU (CWA 6186) |
Texas House, District 144 | Mary Ann Perez (D), incumbent |
Texas House, District 145 | Christina Morales (D), incumbent |
Texas House, District 146 | Lauren Ashley Simmons (D), incumbent Member of TSEU (CWA 6186) & CWA 1180 |
Texas House, District 147 | No Action |
Texas House, District 148 | Penny Morales Shaw (D), incumbent |
Texas House, District 149 | Darlene Breaux (D) |
Note: Union affiliations shown for Texas AFL-CIO affiliated union members.
The Committee on Political Education (COPE) is the Texas labor movement’s political arm. Every two years, the COPE Convention votes on statewide endorsements and adopts local endorsements from across the state.
Local race endorsements have also been made by the local Area Labor Federations and Central Labor Councils.
The COPE further recommends that in runoff elections and the general election, the COPE process laid out in the Texas AFL-CIO Constitution and observed at the COPE Convention will continue to apply to statewide, congressional, and legislative endorsements.
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The Texas AFL-CIO is the state labor federation consisting of more than 250,000 affiliated union members and advocates for working people in Texas. Learn more at texasaflcio.org