Where are the Democrats in Texas governor’s race? Here are possible candidates
The clock is ticking for Democrats to line up to run against Gov. Greg Abbott in the 2026 election.
Labor Day is often considered the unofficial start of campaign season, but a headliner Democrat has not stepped forward to take on the three-term incumbent.
“They have to be in a position very soon where they’ve got the right candidate with the right issue and let them start building a campaign base,” said Brandon Rottinghaus, a political science professor at the University of Houston.
Abbott is a tough opponent. His pocketbooks run deep, and he has years of experience and name power to boot. But there are some factors that could work in Democrats’ favor — particularly the mid-term timing with a Republican in the White House.
Whoever runs will be looking to reverse a daunting statistic: Texas hasn’t elected a Democrat statewide since 1994.
“A quality candidate is one that is photogenic, well spoken, has universal name recognition and a lot of money,” said Jim Riddlesperger, a TCU political science professor. “That’s who the Texas Democrats are looking for, and just by my definition, you can tell there’s just not many people who fall into that category, if anybody.”
Other Texas races drawing attention
Some Democrats who come up as possible candidates for governor have declared bids for other statewide seats.
Take Sen. Nathan Johnson, a Dallas Democrat who has launched a bid for Texas attorney general. He previously told The Texas Tribune he was encouraged to run for lieutenant governor and comptroller.
Or, former U.S. Rep. Colin Allred, a Dallas Democrat who challenged Cruz for U.S. Senate in 2024. He’s arguably one of the most well-known Democrats in the state, a precursor for a gubernatorial run, but has said he’ll again seek a Senate seat, this time running against longtime U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, a Republican from Austin.
The Senate seat is widely seen by Democrats seen as one of the most vulnerable, particularly if the March Republican primary is won by embattled Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.
Rep. James Talarico, an Austin Democrat, comes up as a possible contender for governor, when narrowing in on the Texas House as a candidate pool. The former teacher and pastor has viral moments as a member of the Texas House and hasn’t been shy about challenging Abbott on social media.
However, a recent comment to Mother Jones suggests he may be more focused on the U.S. Senate seat held by Cornyn in 2026. In the interview, Talarico said he was “seriously looking at the U.S. Senate race” when asked about running for senate or governor.
Possible contenders from Fort Worth?
Among others in the Texas Legislature, Rottinghaus mentioned Fort Worth Democrats Rep. Nicole Collier and Rep. Ramon Romero Jr. as possible contenders for governor, but both have said they’re focused on their state House seats.
Collier garnered national attention when was locked into the Texas Capitol after refusing to agree to DPS custody after breaking quorum. The moment and national eyes could be a launching point for a gubernatorial bid, much like Democrat Wendy Davis’ 2013 filibuster as a Fort Worth Senator, but asked if she’s interested in the statewide seat, Collier said she intends to run for reelection to state House District 95.
Romero, who chairs the Mexican American Legislative Caucus, said he’s focused on his work as a state representative and as caucus chair, though he’d “love to serve all Texans state wide someday.”
The Castro brothers of San Antonio are frequently on the short list of statewide contenders, including for governor. Neither U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro or his brother, former HUD Secretary Julian Castro, could be reached for comment.
Among the rising names in the Democratic Party in Texas are U.S. Rep. Greg Casar of Austin and U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett of Dallas. They’re also among the members of Congress whose House districts are affected by Texas’ mid-decade congressional redistricting.
“A lot of these folks will in fact say, ‘Well hell, if I can’t get reelected to Congress, I might as well run for governor or for Senate,” said Riddlesperger.
But Casar has already announced a bid for one of the newly-redrawn congressional seats, if the district is upheld in court. Crockett didn’t return a request for comment sent to her congressional office.
Rottingahus said he sees Crockett and Casar as more national figures. Plus, having a longer stay in the House builds seniority in Washington, he said.
“I kind of see that they want to build that and kind of keep moving and hope that Democrats can get in the majority, and then they can have more authority,” Rottinghaus said.
Riddlesperger isn’t ruling out U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett from Austin as a statewide candidate. Doggett is retiring rather than running against Casar, if the new districts take effect. Decades ago he ran a statewide bid for U.S. Senate against Republican Phil Gramm.
“He may not be thinking that at all, but he’s certainly one of the ones that you could envision doing it one more time,” Riddlesperger said.
A request for comment sent to Doggett’s congressional office was not returned.
And then there’s Beto O’Rourke, Abbott’s last Democratic challenger. He’s been focused on supporting Democratic candidates from the sidelines since his 2022 race against Abbott, where he lost statewide. Lately, O’Rourke has been traveling the state with other Democratic players on the issue of redistricting.
The former El Paso congressman declined to comment, but has talked about his political future in recent interviews. Most speciation around an O’Rourke campaign has centered on the Senate race, rather than a bid for governor.
“My MO is, I want to be helpful,” O’Rourke told reporters in a July 24 interview. “I want to be useful. I want to do everything that I can given the stakes and the threats that we face in this country. So, if that’s running for Senate, with extraordinary candidates running for governor, lieutenant governor and AG, I want to do that. But if that’s not the right move, if that’s not how it pans out, if that’s not what people in Texas want, then I’m going to support a ticket like that, and do whatever I can to raise money, register voters and turn them out in November.”
Democrats already running for governor
Democratic candidates who have said they’re running include retired firefighter Bobby Cole of Quitman and retired Marine Nick Pappas of Lewisville.
Whoever the candidate — or candidates — ultimately is, Democrats have an uphill fight ahead. Experts note that if history is any indicator, a Republican in the White House could bode well for Democrats come election time.
“These things tend to move in cycles — blue waves, red waves, blue waves, red waves,” said Katherine Fischer, the director of the Texas Majority PAC, in an Aug. 21 press call with Davis, the former Texas Senator from Fort Worth. The PAC works to elect Democrats statewide.
“Which means that Abbott is more vulnerable than he typically would be, because in a blue wave year, he too will experience it,” Fischer said. “I think it depends a lot on who the candidate might end up being, and obviously he has a lot of money, so that person would need to raise a ton of money, too.”
Fischer didn’t offer specific names.
“I know there are a few people considering it,” Fischer said. “I don’t think I can say that on the record right now, who those people are.”
This story was originally published September 3, 2025 at 4:50 AM.
