2022 Texas Attorney General election
The 2022 Texas Attorney General election took place on November 8, 2022, to elect the Attorney General of Texas . Incumbent Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton won re-election to his third term.[ 1] [ 2] [ 3] Paxton won 233 counties and won the popular vote by a margin of 9.7%, underperforming Governor Greg Abbott 's concurrent bid for re-election by 1.1%.
Republican primary
Candidates
Nominee
Eliminated in runoff
Eliminated in primary
Withdrawn
Endorsements
George P. Bush
U.S. Executive Branch officials
State senators
Local officials
Newspapers
Organizations
Individuals
Ken Paxton
U.S. Executive Branch officials
Organizations
Eva Guzman
Newspaper and other media
Organizations
Texans for Lawsuit Reform[ 8]
First round
Polling
Graphical summary
Poll source
Date(s) administered
Sample size[ a]
Margin of error
George P. Bush
Louie Gohmert
Eva Guzman
Matt Krause
Ken Paxton
Other
Undecided
Emerson College [ 23]
February 21–22, 2022
522 (LV)
± 4.2%
20%
12%
12%
–
43%
–
14%
UT Tyler [ 24]
February 8–15, 2022
577 (LV)
± 4.4%
25%
7%
13%
–
39%
–
16%
YouGov /UT [ 25]
January 28 – February 7, 2022
375 (LV)
± 5.1%
21%
15%
16%
–
47%
1%
–
UT Tyler [ 26]
January 18–25, 2022
503 (LV)
± 5.1%
19%
8%
7%
–
33%
–
33%
YouGov /UH [ 27]
January 14–24, 2022
490 (LV)
± 3.7%
16%
13%
8%
–
39%
–
24%
November 23, 2021
Krause withdraws from the race
UT Tyler [ 28]
November 9–16, 2021
401 (LV)
± 5.3%
32%
–
7%
–
46%
7%
8%
YouGov /UT /TT [ 29]
October 22–31, 2021
554 (RV)
± 4.2%
16%
–
2%
3%
48%
3%
27%
YouGov /TXHPF [ 30]
October 14–27, 2021
405 (LV)
± 4.9%
17%
–
6%
2%
50%
–
25%
UT Tyler [ 31]
September 7–14, 2021
348 (LV)
± 6.7%
28%
–
5%
–
43%
14%
10%
UT Tyler [ 32]
June 20–29, 2021
337 (LV)
± 6.1%
34%
–
4%
–
42%
12%
8%
Results
Primary results map by county: 30–40%
40–50%
50–60%
60–70%
30–40%
40–50%
50–60%
60–70%
Gohmert performed best in Texas's 1st congressional district , where he served as a US representative at the time; Guzman performed best in urban Travis , Harris , and Dallas counties; Bush performed best in the Rio Grande Valley ; and Paxton performed best in the Texas Panhandle , South Plains , and Southeast Texas .[ 33]
Runoff
Polling
Poll source
Date(s) administered
Sample size[ a]
Margin of error
George P. Bush
Ken Paxton
Undecided
UT Tyler [ 36]
May 2–10, 2022
570 (LV)
± 4.6%
35%
41%
24%
CWS Research (R)[ 37] [ A]
May 4–10, 2022
992 (LV)
± 3.1%
31%
58%
11%
CWS Research (R)[ 38] [ A]
March 29 – April 2, 2022
678 (LV)
± 3.8%
30%
59%
11%
YouGov /TXHPF [ 39]
March 18–28, 2022
438 (LV)
± 4.7%
23%
65%
12%
Results
Primary runoff results map by county: 50–60%
60–70%
70–80%
80–90%
90–100%
Democratic primary
Candidates
Nominee
Eliminated in runoff
Eliminated in primary
Declined
Endorsements
Joe Jaworski
Labor unions
Newspapers and other media
Organizations
Lee Merritt
U.S. Senators
U.S. Representatives
State senators
Local officials
Organizations
Texas Organizing Project[ 55] (endorse Garza in the runoff)
U.S. Representatives
Local officials
Mike Fields, former judge of the Harris County Criminal Court at Law No. 14 and former Attorney General candidate[ 45]
Newspapers and other media
Individuals
Lee Merritt , civil rights attorney and former Attorney General candidate[ 45]
Labor unions
Organizations
First round
Polling
Graphical summary
Poll source
Date(s) administered
Sample size[ a]
Margin of error
Mike Fields
Rochelle Garza
Joe Jaworski
Lee Merritt
S. T-Bone Raynor
Other
Undecided
Emerson College [ 23]
February 21–22, 2022
388 (LV)
± 4.9%
5%
30%
22%
16%
5%
–
22%
UT Tyler [ 24]
February 8–15, 2022
479 (LV)
± 4.9%
9%
22%
13%
9%
6%
–
42%
YouGov /UT [ 25]
January 28 – February 7, 2022
332 (LV)
± 5.4%
11%
41%
24%
15%
6%
3%
–
UT Tyler [ 26]
January 18–25, 2022
460 (LV)
± 5.4%
7%
11%
11%
6%
4%
–
61%
YouGov /UH [ 27]
January 14–24, 2022
616 (LV)
± 3.3%
6%
13%
10%
7%
6%
–
57%
YouGov /UT /TT [ 29]
October 22–31, 2021
436 (RV)
± 4.7%
–
–
14%
8%
–
6%
72%
YouGov /TXHPF [ 30]
October 14–27, 2021
– (LV)
–
–
–
20%
20%
–
–
60%
Results
Runoff
Polling
Poll source
Date(s) administered
Sample size[ a]
Margin of error
Rochelle Garza
Joe Jaworski
Undecided
UT Tyler [ 36]
May 2–10, 2022
501 (LV)
± 4.9%
35%
20%
46%
YouGov /TXHPF [ 39]
March 18–28, 2022
435 (LV)
± 4.7%
46%
31%
23%
Results
Libertarian convention
Declared
General election
On October 27, 2022, Libertarian nominee Mark Ash published an op-ed in The Amarillo Pioneer in which he blasted Ken Paxton as "the poster child for corruption and authoritarianism" and recommended that if voters were "reluctant to throw away their votes on a third-party candidate ," they should vote for Democratic nominee Rochelle Garza instead. The Texas Democratic Party put out a statement claiming that Ash had endorsed Garza, but Ash clarified that he was not endorsing her, nor would he be dropping out of the race.[ 69]
Predictions
Polling
Graphical summary
Poll source
Date(s) administered
Sample size[ a]
Margin of error
Ken Paxton (R)
Rochelle Garza (D)
Mark Ash (L)
Other
Undecided
CWS Research (R)[ 72] [ A]
November 2–5, 2022
786 (LV)
± 3.5%
44%
38%
5%
–
12%
UT Tyler [ 73]
October 17–24, 2022
1,330 (RV)
± 2.9%
39%
35%
5%
4%[ b]
18%
973 (LV)
± 3.4%
42%
38%
4%
3%[ c]
12%
Emerson College [ 74]
October 17–19, 2022
1,000 (LV)
± 3.0%
47%
42%
4%
–
8%
Siena College [ 75]
October 16–19, 2022
649 (LV)
± 5.1%
48%
42%
–
2%[ d]
8%
ActiVote [ 76]
June 23 – September 21, 2022
209 (LV)
± 7.0%
45%
43%
12%
–
–
Siena College [ 77]
September 14–18, 2022
651 (LV)
± 4.4%
47%
42%
–
–
11%
Texas Hispanic Policy Foundation [ 78]
September 6–15, 2022
1,172 (LV)
± 2.9%
47%
42%
3%
–
8%
UT Tyler [ 79]
September 7–13, 2022
1,243 (RV)
± 2.9%
37%
30%
6%
6%[ e]
20%
YouGov /UT [ 80]
August 26 – September 6, 2022
1,200 (RV)
± 2.8%
38%
33%
4%
5%[ f]
21%
YouGov /UH /TSU [ 81]
August 11–29, 2022
1,312 (LV)
± 2.7%
45%
42%
3%
–
10%
UT Tyler [ 82]
August 1–7, 2022
1,384 (RV)
± 2.8%
34%
32%
8%
7%
18%
1,199 (LV)
± 3.0%
36%
34%
8%
6%
16%
YouGov /UH [ 83]
June 27 – July 7, 2022
1,169 (RV)
± 2.9%
43%
40%
5%
–
12%
1,006 (LV)
± 3.1%
46%
41%
4%
–
9%
YouGov /UT [ 84]
June 16–24, 2022
1,200 (RV)
± 2.8%
37%
29%
5%
5%
24%
YouGov /TXHPF [ 39]
March 18–28, 2022
1,139 (LV)
± 2.6%
48%
42%
3%
–
7%
Hypothetical polling
George P. Bush vs. Rochelle Garza
Poll source
Date(s) administered
Sample size[ a]
Margin of error
George P. Bush (R)
Rochelle Garza (D)
Mark Ash (L)
Undecided
YouGov /TXHPF [ 39]
March 18–28, 2022
1,139 (LV)
± 2.6%
39%
39%
7%
15%
George P. Bush vs. Joe Jaworski
Poll source
Date(s) administered
Sample size[ a]
Margin of error
George P. Bush (R)
Joe Jaworski (D)
Mark Ash (L)
Undecided
YouGov /TXHPF [ 39]
March 18–28, 2022
1,139 (LV)
± 2.6%
38%
39%
8%
15%
Ken Paxton vs. Joe Jaworski
Poll source
Date(s) administered
Sample size[ a]
Margin of error
Ken Paxton (R)
Joe Jaworski (D)
Mark Ash (L)
Undecided
YouGov /TXHPF [ 39]
March 18–28, 2022
1,139 (LV)
± 2.6%
48%
41%
3%
8%
Ken Paxton vs. Justin Nelson
Poll source
Date(s) administered
Sample size[ a]
Margin of error
Ken Paxton (R)
Justin Nelson (D)
Undecided
Data for Progress (D)[ 85] [ B]
September 15–22, 2020
726 (LV)
± 3.6%
41%
37%
22%
Results
By congressional district
Paxton won 25 of 38 congressional districts.[ 86]
Notes
^ a b c d e f g h i Key: A – all adults RV – registered voters LV – likely voters V – unclear
^ "Someone else" with 4%
^ "Someone else" with 3%
^ "Another candidate" with 1%; "Not going to vote" with 1%
^ "Someone else" with 6%
^ "Someone else" with 5%
Partisan clients
^ a b c Poll sponsored by Defend Texas Liberty PAC, which supports Paxton
^ Poll sponsored by the Defend Students Action Fund
See also
References
^ Barragan, James (November 8, 2022). "Ken Paxton wins third term as attorney general, beating Democrat Rochelle Garza" . Texas Tribune. Retrieved November 9, 2022 .
^ a b "TEXAS" . Stateageelections.com . Retrieved October 6, 2020 .
^ Gates, Billy (June 10, 2021). "Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick announces bid for re-election in 2022" . Kxan.com . Retrieved July 1, 2021 .
^ @DecisionDeskHQ (May 25, 2022). "Decision Desk HQ projects Ken Paxton (@KenPaxtonTX) is the winner of the Republican nomination for Attorney General..." (Tweet ) – via Twitter .
^ "George P. Bush announces bid for Texas attorney general" . The Hill . June 2, 2021. Retrieved June 2, 2021 .
^ Roy, Reagan (November 22, 2021). "IT'S OFFICIAL: US Rep. Louie Gohmert announces he's running for Texas Attorney General" . CBS. Retrieved November 22, 2021 .
^ "George P. Bush, Ken Paxton prepare for a bitter primary runoff battle for Texas attorney general" . March 3, 2022.
^ a b Patrick, Svitek (June 21, 2021). "Eva Guzman, former Texas Supreme Court justice, officially starts campaign for attorney general" . The Texas Tribune . Retrieved June 22, 2021 .
^ Svitek, Patrick (November 23, 2021). "Republican state Rep. Matt Krause drops out of attorney general's race to run for Tarrant County district attorney" . The Texas Tribune . Archived from the original on November 24, 2021. Retrieved November 27, 2021 .
^ a b c "George P. Bush Scrubs Endorsement From Indicted Sheriff Linked to the Oath Keepers" . Rolling Stone . November 22, 2021.
^ Wildstein, David (November 15, 2021). "Bramnick raising money for George P. Bush in Texas race" . Newjerseyglobe.com .
^ "HANAK ENDORSES GEORGE P. BUSH FOR TEXAS ATTORNEY GENERAL" . Kwhi.com . October 23, 2021. Retrieved October 9, 2021 .
^ "ACU seeks political balance, but Texas AG candidate Merritt on historic mission" . Abilene Reporter News . January 26, 2022. Retrieved January 30, 2022 .
^ a b "Time to vote in attorney general, Tarrant DA runoffs. Here are our recommendations" . Fort Worth Star-Telegram . May 24, 2022. Retrieved May 27, 2022 .
^ a b "Editorial: Our recommendations for the Texas runoff elections" . San Antonio Express-News . May 24, 2022. Retrieved May 27, 2022 .
^ "Mattress Mack shoots ad endorsing George P. Bush for Texas AG" . March 22, 2022.
^ Ward, Myah (July 26, 2021). "Trump endorses scandal-plagued Ken Paxton for Texas attorney general" . Politico . Archived from the original on July 27, 2021. Retrieved July 27, 2021 .
^ "The Conservative Political Action Coalition (CPAC) announced its endorsement of Ken Paxton for re-election as Texas Attorney General" . American Conservative Union . January 24, 2022. Retrieved June 26, 2022 .
^ "2022 General Election Endorsements" . August 18, 2022. Retrieved September 7, 2022 .
^ "Editorial: We recommend Eva Guzman for Texas Attorney General in the Republican primary" . Houston Chronicle . February 13, 2022.
^ a b "Editorial: In AG races, we recommend Guzman in GOP primary, Garza for Dems" . Austin American-Statesman . February 20, 2022.
^ Taylor, Goldenstein (November 22, 2021). "State Rep. Matt Krause decides to run for Tarrant District Attorney, not Texas AG" . Houston Chronicle . Retrieved December 15, 2021 .
^ a b Emerson College
^ a b UT Tyler
^ a b YouGov/UT
^ a b UT Tyler
^ a b YouGov/UH
^ UT Tyler
^ a b YouGov/UT/TT
^ a b YouGov/TXHPF
^ UT Tyler
^ UT Tyler
^ "Official Results | 2022 March 1st Republican Primary" . Secretary of State of Texas .
^ a b "Candidate Information" . Texas Secretary of State John B. Scott . Retrieved December 17, 2021 .
^ a b Astudillo, Carla (March 10, 2022) [March 1, 2022]. "Election results: How Texas voted in the 2022 primary" . Decision Desk HQ . The Texas Tribune . Retrieved March 16, 2022 .
^ a b UT Tyler
^ CWS Research (R)
^ CWS Research (R)
^ a b c d e f YouGov/TXHPF
^ a b "Texas Election Results - Unofficial Results - Attorney General" . Secretary of State of Texas .
^ Svitek, Patrick (November 1, 2021). "Former ACLU lawyer Rochelle Garza decides to run for attorney general after redistricting upends congressional campaign" . The Texas Tribune . Archived from the original on November 1, 2021. Retrieved November 1, 2021 .
^ Grieder, Erica (September 16, 2020). "Grieder: Texas AG Paxton draws 2022 challenger who vows to work across the aisle" . Houston Chronicle . Retrieved October 6, 2020 .
^ Goldenstein, Taylor (January 6, 2022). "Once a Republican, ex-Harris County judge Mike Fields running for Texas AG as a Democrat" . Houston Chronicle . Retrieved January 23, 2022 .
^ a b "Civil rights lawyer Lee Merritt concedes dem AG primary loss, endorses Rochelle Garza" . March 10, 2022.
^ a b c d Barragan, James; Zhang, Andrew (March 10, 2022). "Democrat Lee Merritt suspends campaign for attorney general nine days after election day, clearing path for runoff" . Texas Tribune .
^ Svitek, Patrick (July 13, 2021). "Civil rights attorney Lee Merritt, a Democrat, launches campaign against Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton" . Texas Tribune . Retrieved July 13, 2021 .
^ "Qualified Candidates" . Texas Secretary of State . Retrieved December 14, 2021 .
^ "BIDEN AND TRUMP ARE RUNNING NECK AND NECK IN ARIZONA, FLORIDA, AND TEXAS" (PDF) . Filesforprogress.org . September 22, 2020. Retrieved October 6, 2020 .
^ "Texas AFL-CIO COPE Releases New Round of Runoff Endorsements" . Texas AFL–CIO . March 31, 2022. Retrieved March 31, 2022 .
^ a b "March 1 Democratic Primary Endorsements (No Filler)" . The Austin Chronicle . February 10, 2022.
^ "Opinion: We recommend in the Democratic primary for Texas attorney general" . The Dallas Morning News . February 10, 2022. We recommend Galveston lawyer Joe Jaworski in this crowded Democratic primary for Texas attorney general.
^ The Editorial Board (February 13, 2022). "Editorial: We recommend Joe Jaworski for Texas Attorney General in Democratic primary" . Houston Chronicle .
^ "Voting / Endorsements" . Stonewall Democrats of Dallas .
^ a b c d Barragán, James (February 23, 2022). "Civil rights attorney Lee Merritt takes heat for lack of Texas law license in his bid for attorney general" . The Texas Tribune .
^ Sessions, Kennedy (December 17, 2021). "Texas Organizing Project endorses Merritt for AG" . Texas Signal . Retrieved January 4, 2022 .
^ a b "Former ACLU lawyer Rochelle Garza decides to run for attorney general after redistricting upends congressional campaign" . Texas Tribune . November 1, 2021. Retrieved March 5, 2022 .
^ "Texas AFL-CIO COPE Finalizes Nov. 8 Endorsements" . Texas AFL–CIO . June 28, 2022. Retrieved July 18, 2022 .
^ "2022 ELECTION ENDORSEMENTS" . Retrieved September 6, 2022 .
^ "Endorsed Leaders - Annie's List" . Annie's List .
^ "State and Local Candidates" . EMILY's List . Retrieved March 5, 2022 .
^ "End Citizens United // Let America Vote Endorses Rochelle Garza for Texas Attorney General" . July 12, 2022. Retrieved August 11, 2022 .
^ "Equality Texas endorses Garza for Texas AG" . September 1, 2022. Retrieved September 6, 2022 .
^ "Latino Victory Fund endorses Rochelle Garza for Texas Attorney General" . Texas Signal . January 20, 2022. Retrieved January 22, 2022 .
^ "NARAL Pro-Choice America endorses Rochelle Garza for Texas Attorney General" . NARAL Pro-Choice America . February 24, 2022. Retrieved March 2, 2022 .
^ "Texas College Democrats endorse candidates for statewide office" . January 19, 2022.
^ "2022 Primary Runoff Endorsements" . Planned Parenthood .
^ "TOP PAC Endorses Rochelle Garza for TX Attorney General" . April 5, 2022.
^ Dikeman, Neal (April 11, 2022). "Texas Libertarians & Greens Nominate Statewide Candidates for November" . www.texasfreepress.com . Retrieved April 19, 2022 .
^ "Libertarian Mark Ash recommends Rochelle Garza over Ken Paxton in Texas AG race" . October 29, 2022.
^ "The Attorneys General: A Dozen Races Dot the Competitive Landscape" . Sabato's Crystal Ball . September 14, 2022. Retrieved September 15, 2022 .
^ Solomon, Zack (November 7, 2022). "Elections Daily Secretary of State Ratings" . Elections Daily . Retrieved November 29, 2022 .
^ CWS Research (R)
^ UT Tyler
^ Emerson College
^ Siena College
^ ActiVote
^ Siena College
^ Texas Hispanic Policy Foundation
^ UT Tyler
^ YouGov/UT
^ YouGov/UH/TSU
^ UT Tyler
^ YouGov/UH
^ YouGov/UT
^ Data for Progress (D)
^ @averyhatestwt (March 10, 2023). "TX Governor, Lieutenant Governor, and Attorney General results by CD; I'm not sure if this has already been done but I haven't seen it before" (Tweet ) – via Twitter .
External links
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