What happened in the May 24 runoff election: Democratic, Republican voters have chosen their nominees

SAN ANTONIO – The ballots for the November midterm are set after Tuesday’s runoff election in Texas.

Democratic voters in Bexar County decided on their nominee for county judge, while voters of both parties also voted for candidates in statewide and congressional races.

In Bexar County, 112,362 votes were cast, in total, or 9.3% of the county’s 1.2 million registered voters, including in-person early votes, mail-in votes and election day votes.

Find a rundown of the election results below.

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Here are the results from key runoff races from the Bexar County area and around South/Central Texas.

Congressional District 28

A contentious rematch between Congressman Henry Cuellar and immigration attorney Jessica Cisneros went down to the wire. While Cuellar claimed victory by 177 votes, the race was too close to call early Wednesday.

The race intensified after a leaked Supreme Court draft indicated that Roe v. Wade — the landmark case that legalized abortion — would be overturned. Cuellar was the only House Democrat to vote against federal legislation to codify abortion, which Cisneros has emphasized leading up to the runoff.

The March primary was also a close battle, as Cuellar edged out Cisneros by 767 votes.

On the Republican side, Cassy Garcia defeated Sandra Whitten for the nomination.

Garcia won with 57% of the vote, while Sandra Whitten trailed with 43%.

Garcia is a political staffer, having served most recently as U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz’s Deputy State Director. She was appointed by then-President Donald Trump in July of 2020 to serve as Commissioner for the White House Hispanic Prosperity Initiative. Whitten, a youth and preschool director, was the Republican nominee for the district in 2020, but lost to Cuellar in the general election.

The winners of both races will face each other in the general election.

Congressional District 15

The Democratic race for Congressional District 15 also remained too close to call early Wednesday morning.

With 68% of the vote counted, Ruben Ramirez captured 51% of the vote compared to 49% for Michelle Vallejo.

This district was redrawn to become more competitive, giving Republican candidate Monica De La Cruz a shot to flip the seat in November.

Bexar County Judge

Former District Court Judge Peter Sakai will be the Democratic candidate for Bexar County Judge after the votes were counted on Tuesday.

Sakai bested former state Rep. Ina Minjarez on Tuesday, winning 58% of the vote. In the March primary, Sakai secured 41% of the vote compared to Minjarez’s 31%.

The third-place candidate, former mayoral chief of staff Ivalis Meza Gonzalez, endorsed Sakai ahead of the runoff.

Sakai will face Republican Trish DeBerry in November, who won her primary in March.

The general election will determine who will succeed Nelson Wolff, who has been Bexar County Judge since 2001.

The position is the top elected office in the county.

Attorney General

Despite multiple scandals mounting up against Attorney General Ken Paxton, he will advance to the general election in November as the Republican nominee.

Paxton has been plagued by scandals in his tenure as attorney general. He remains indicted in a securities fraud case, is under investigation by the FBI over accusations that he used his office to help a wealthy donor and has been sued by the state bar over his challenge of the 2020 election.

Still, Paxton cruised to victory over former Texas Land Commissioner George P. Bush by a margin of 68% to 32%.

The Democratic nomination was also decided on Tuesday. Rochelle Mercedes Garza defeated former Galveston Mayor Joe Jaworski. Garza won 61% of the vote, while Jaworski won 38% of the vote.

Garza will face Paxton in November.

Lieutenant Governor

Dan Patrick won the Republican nomination in March, but the Democratic nomination was decided on Tuesday.

Mike Collier secured the nomination with 54% of the vote, while former state Rep. Michelle Beckley trailed with 45%.

Congressional District 35

Among the 10 candidates who sought the Republican nomination in the district, it came down to two for the runoff — former Corpus Christi Mayor Dan McQueen and Michael Rodriguez.

McQueen won the nomination with 61% of the vote, while Rodriguez trailed with 39%.

The district, which spans from Austin to San Antonio, is reliably Democratic, making former Austin City Councilman Greg Casar — who advanced from the Democratic primary — the favored candidate in November.

Texas Senate District 24

Republican State Sen. Pete Flores, who faced off against former congressional candidate Raul Reyes in Texas Senate District 24, emerged victorious on Tuesday. Flores received 59% of the vote.

Texas House District 122

Former San Antonio City Councilwoman Elisa Chan lost to former Republican Party precinct chairman Mark Dorazio.

Although Chan captured the most votes in the March primary, she lost to Dorazio on Tuesday. Dorazio won with 55% of the vote.

This seat was held by Republican Rep. Lyle Larson, who decided not to seek reelection after a polarizing session in the Texas Legislature.

The Republican runoff winner will face the uncontested Democratic candidate Angi Aramburu in November.

Land Commissioner

Land Commissioner candidates for both parties faced runoff races on Tuesday.

On the Republican side, Dawn Buckingham cruised to victory against Tim Westley, winning 69% of the vote.

Democrat Sandragrace Martinez, who won 32% of the vote, will face off against Jay Kleberg, who won 26% of the vote.

Railroad Commissioner

Republican Railroad Commissioner Wayne Christian secured the nomination after a bitter primary race and runoff against Sarah Stogner.

Christian won the race with 66% of the vote.

Luke Warford took the Democratic nomination in March.

Everything to know about voting in the 2022 Texas primary runoff election on May 24

🗳 FULL BALLOTS: 2022 Democratic, Republican primary runoff ballots for Bexar County