Joseph Ax

(Reuters) – Texas will host the first national primary nomination contests in 2022. Early voting begins Monday.

While the gubernatorial race – headlined by incumbent Republican Greg Abbott and Democratic challenger Beto O’Rourke – will capture much of the attention [L1N2U007J]Primary elections are held for the U.S. House of Representatives. These primary elections will be used to determine the makeup of Congress in the future.

Texas law provides that the Texas Supreme Court will hold a runoff between the top two finishers on May 24. The following six congressional races are important to watch:

TRUMP LOYALTY EXAMINATION

In 2020, Van Taylor won Texas’ 3rd District with a comfortable win. This despite the fact that former President Donald Trump was barely ahead of Joe Biden. Republican opposition has accused Taylor of betraying Trump and his party by voting to approve the formation of an independent committee to examine the January 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol.

Taylor could be vulnerable to challenge from the left if the suburb of Dallas is made more conservative by Republican-backed redistricting in 2022. Keith Self, an ex-Judge in Collin County, is Taylor’s leading competitor. Self has criticised Taylor for voting in favor the Commission, which was rejected by the Senate. The Jan. 6 attack has been investigated by the House Democrats.

The Republican candidate will win the general election on Nov. 8.

KEVIN BRADY’S SUCCESSOR

A dozen Republicans seek to be the party’s nominee for Kevin Brady (13-term) representing the 8th District in north Houston. These two prominent Republicans have divided many top Republicans in the state.

Morgan Luttrell is an ex-Navy SEAL and has been supported by a political committee that links to Republican congressional leadership. Luttrell is twin to Marcus Luttrell who was a Navy SEAL. He also wrote the bestselling memoir, “Lone Survivor”.

Christian Collins, conservative activist is supported by both the House’s Freedom Caucus and U.S. Ted Cruz and Trump-loving acolytes Marjorie Taylor Greene are among those supporting Collins.

Given the strong Republican vote in this district, the winner will almost certainly win the general election.

REPUBLICANS ARE WINNING GROUND

Although the 15th District is held by Democrats, it was competitive in 2020 due to Trump’s surprise strength among Hispanic Texans. Republicans redrew lines last fall to make them more friendly to them. The incumbent, Vicente Gonzalez, decided to run for reelection in the neighboring – and more Democratic-leaning – 34th District, leaving half a dozen Democrats vying for the party’s nod.

Monica De La Cruz is the Republican front-runner, narrowly losing to Gonzalez in 2020. This race will be the most heatedly contested in state history.

DEMOCRATIC REMATCH

After a tight 2020 race, the Democratic primary for the South Texas 28th District is a rematch. Jessica Cisneros (a Liberal backed by Representative Alexandra Ocasio Cortez and left-wing Justice Democrats) will challenge Henry Cuellar (9-term), one of the most conservative Democrats at the House.

An FBI raid at Cuellar’s house https://www.reuters.com/world/us/fbi-searches-home-prominent-texas-democratic-congressman-cuellar-reports-2022-01-20 in January has given Cisneros a boost. Cuellar was not charged, but Cuellar said that he feels confident that he will be freed from any wrongdoing.

Six Republicans vie for the nomination. It is majority Latino. Trump won the district in 2020 even though Joe Biden carried it narrowly.

PROGRESSIVE PUMP

A test for the left-wing party will be held in San Antonio’s solidly Democratic 35th District. It stretches from San Antonio to Austin. Greg Casar is a former Austin councilman and democratic socialist. He has the support of prominent liberals including U.S. Ocasio-Cortez, Senator Elizabeth Warren

Casar faces several challengers, including state Representative Eddie Rodriguez. Lloyd Doggett is the current representative for this district. He has chosen to run in the newly formed 37th district, which is based out of Austin.

BLACK REPUBLICAN VETERAN

One of two new congressional seats this year thanks to Texas’ booming population, the 38th District stretches northwest from Houston and was drawn by Republicans https://www.reuters.com/world/us/redistricting-gets-under-way-democrats-prospects-looking-brighter-2021-10-02 to be safely conservative.

Wesley Hunt (a Black conservative, Army vet, who narrowly lost in 2020 to Lizzie Fletcher in a race that received national attention) has been elected the top Republican candidate. Cruz has endorsed him, along with House Republican leaders. However, he is up against many challengers.