Who is running in Hidalgo County, Texas in 2026
- Criminal District Attorney
- Toribio "Terry" Palacios and Lydia Elizondo
- District Clerk
- Laura Hinojosa and Maricela "Mari" De León
- County Treasurer
- Lita Leo and Princess Anne Pena
- Justice of the Peace, Precinct 1, Place 2
- Andrew González and Ron McVey
- Mission Mayor
- Norie Gonzalez Garza, Ruben Plata, Armando "Doc" O'Caña, Ricardo "Rick" Salinas, Natalie "Nati" Garza and Juan Gines
- Mission City Council, Place 1
- Jessica Ortega and Tim Brown
- Mission City Council, Place 2 (special election)
- Alexis Hernandez, Ricardo "Chief" Saldaña, Linda Castañeda and Maira Salinas
- Mission City Council, Place 3
- Marissa Ortega Gerlach, Daniel Tijerina and Albert "Al" Perez
- Weslaco City Commissioner, At-Large
- Israel Gonzalez Jr., Abad Morales and Johnny J. Salinas Jr.
- U.S. Senator
- James Talarico and Ken Paxton
- Governor
- Gina Hinojosa and Greg Abbott
- Lieutenant Governor
- Vikki Goodwin and Dan Patrick
- Attorney General
- Nathan Johnson and Mayes Middleton
- U.S. Representative, District 15
- Bobby Pulido and Monica De La Cruz
- U.S. Representative, District 28
- Marlón Durán, Henry Cuellar and Tano Tijerina
- State Representative, District 35
- Oscar Longoria and Oscar Rosa
- State Representative, District 40
- Terry Canales and Celeste Cabrera-Huff
- State Representative, District 41
- Julio Salinas and Gary Groves
Hidalgo County
These races are partisan. County Judge Richard F. Cortez and Commissioners Eduardo "Eddie" Cantú (Precinct 2) and Ellie Torres (Precinct 4) have no opponents, so the contested county races are district attorney, district clerk, treasurer and one justice of the peace seat.
Criminal District Attorney
Vote for oneToribio "Terry" Palacios
Seems like good people (best choice in this race) DemocratLydia Elizondo
Not enough info RepublicanRan unopposed for the Republican nomination. We found no campaign site, interviews or questionnaire answers from her for this race.
Sources: Branch, Hidalgo County sample ballot
District Clerk
Vote for oneWe found almost nothing public on either candidate in this race. The tie goes to the Democrat.
Laura Hinojosa
Not enough info (best choice in this race) DemocratHas been district clerk since 2007 and won a fifth term in 2022. She sits on the Texas Association of Counties board and has pushed to digitize court records.
Sources: Fox RGV, GoodParty, Hidalgo County
Maricela "Mari" De León
Not enough info RepublicanWe found no public record of this candidate's background or positions beyond the ballot.
Sources: Hidalgo County sample ballot
County Treasurer
Vote for oneWe found almost nothing public on either candidate in this race. The tie goes to the Democrat.
Lita Leo
Not enough info (best choice in this race) DemocratWon the seat in 2018 after beating businessman David Salazar Jr. in the Democratic runoff. We found no reporting on her record in office.
Sources: The Monitor, BallotReady
Princess Anne Pena
Not enough info RepublicanWe found no public record of this candidate's background or positions beyond the ballot.
Sources: Hidalgo County sample ballot
Justice of the Peace, Precinct 1, Place 2
Vote for oneOn ballots in the Weslaco, Mercedes and Progreso area. We found nothing public on either candidate. The tie goes to the Democrat.
Andrew González
Not enough info (best choice in this race) DemocratWe found no public record of his record or positions beyond the ballot.
Sources: Branch, Hidalgo County sample ballot
Ron McVey
Not enough info RepublicanWe found no public record of this candidate's background or positions beyond the ballot.
Sources: Branch, Hidalgo County sample ballot
Contested judges and the State Board of Education
Not profiledWe haven't profiled these. Justice, 13th Court of Appeals, Place 6 (Clarissa Silva, R; John Ball, D) and State Board of Education, District 2 (Victoria Hinojosa, R; Thomas Ray Garcia, D). Every county and district judge on the Hidalgo ballot is unopposed (below). The statewide high court and 15th Court of Appeals seats are in the State and federal section.
Unopposed county races
No contestCounty Judge (Richard F. Cortez), County Commissioner Precinct 2 (Eduardo "Eddie" Cantú) and Precinct 4 (Ellie Torres), County Clerk (Arturo Guajardo Jr.), District Courts 206th (Juan Zamora), 275th (Marla Cuellar) and 370th (Noe Gonzalez), County Courts at Law No. 1 (Rodolfo "Rudy" González), No. 2 (Jaime "Jay" Palacios), No. 4 (Katherine García Pérez), No. 5 (Arnoldo Cantú Jr.), No. 6 (Albert García) and No. 8 (Omar Maldonado), Probate Courts No. 1 (Joanne García) and No. 2 (Aissa Garza), Justices of the Peace Precinct 2 Place 1 (Cynthia A. Gutiérrez), Precinct 2 Place 2 (Jaime Jerry Muñoz), Precinct 3 Place 2 (Juan "J.J." Peña Jr.), Precinct 4 Place 2 (André Maldonado) and Precinct 5 Place 1 (Jason "JP" Peña), and Constable Precinct 5 (Daniel "Danny" Marichalar). All are Democrats. The Hidalgo County Appraisal District board is also on the ballot and not rated: Place 1 (Erica Canales) and Place 2 (Veronica "Ronnie" Ontiveros) are unopposed, and Place 3 is Karina Cardoza vs. Jorge Garza.
Mission elections
Mission moved its city elections to November. The mayor's seat and every council seat except Place 4 are on the ballot, plus a special election for Place 2, which Ruben Plata is leaving to run for mayor. The city accepted its 2025 audit nine months late, its general fund is $2.6 million in the red, and S&P cut its credit rating in June. We found little public about most candidates, so these races have no pick.
Mayor
Vote for oneSix candidates. No pick: we couldn't find enough on most of them.
Norie Gonzalez Garza
Not enough info NonpartisanBeat Mayor Armando O'Caña in a 2022 runoff, 56% to 44%. On her watch the city's audits ran late, the general fund went $2.6 million into deficit, and S&P cut the city's credit rating from A-minus to BBB+.
Sources: Progress Times, KRGV, The Monitor
Ruben Plata
Not enough info NonpartisanHas served on the council since 2007 and on the Mission Economic Development Authority. He entered the mayor's race in July.
Sources: City of Mission, The Monitor
Armando "Doc" O'Caña
Not enough info NonpartisanLost his 2022 reelection runoff to Gonzalez Garza, 56% to 44%. We found no reporting on his platform this time.
Sources: KRGV, The Monitor
Ricardo "Rick" Salinas
Not enough info NonpartisanWe found no detail on his platform beyond a brief mention in The Monitor.
Sources: The Monitor, Hidalgo County sample ballot
Natalie "Nati" Garza
Not enough info NonpartisanWe found no public record of this candidate's background or positions beyond the ballot.
Sources: The Monitor, Hidalgo County sample ballot
Juan Gines
Not enough info NonpartisanWe found no public record of this candidate's background or positions beyond the ballot.
Sources: The Monitor, Hidalgo County sample ballot
City Council, Place 1
Vote for oneNo pick: not enough information.
Jessica Ortega
Not enough info NonpartisanSits on the council that accepted the late 2025 audit; she was absent from that June meeting. We found no reporting on her campaign.
Sources: Progress Times, Hidalgo County sample ballot
Tim Brown
Not enough info NonpartisanWe found no public record of this candidate's background or positions beyond the ballot.
Sources: Hidalgo County sample ballot
City Council, Place 2 (special election)
Vote for oneUnexpired term. No pick: we found nothing public on any of the four candidates.
Alexis Hernandez
Not enough info NonpartisanWe found no public record of this candidate's background or positions beyond the ballot.
Sources: Hidalgo County sample ballot
Ricardo "Chief" Saldaña
Not enough info NonpartisanWe found no public record of this candidate's background or positions beyond the ballot.
Sources: Hidalgo County sample ballot
Linda Castañeda
Not enough info NonpartisanWe found no public record of this candidate's background or positions beyond the ballot.
Sources: Hidalgo County sample ballot
Maira Salinas
Not enough info NonpartisanWe found no public record of this candidate's background or positions beyond the ballot.
Sources: Hidalgo County sample ballot
City Council, Place 3
Vote for oneNo pick: not enough information.
Marissa Ortega Gerlach
Not enough info NonpartisanSits on the council that accepted the late 2025 audit. We found no reporting on her campaign.
Sources: Progress Times, Hidalgo County sample ballot
Daniel Tijerina
Not enough info NonpartisanUrged the council in September not to raise police and fire pay, saying, "We also need a budget that we can sustain — not just this year, but five and ten years from now."
Sources: Progress Times, Hidalgo County sample ballot
Albert "Al" Perez
Not enough info NonpartisanWe found no public record of this candidate's background or positions beyond the ballot.
Sources: Hidalgo County sample ballot
Weslaco elections
One contested city seat. Commissioner Adrian Farias (District 4) is unopposed. Weslaco ISD trustee races are in the school boards section.
City Commissioner, At-Large
Vote for oneNo pick: not enough information.
Israel Gonzalez Jr.
Not enough info NonpartisanA political newcomer who retired after about 30 years in H-E-B management, he beat incumbent Leo Muñoz by 101 votes in the first at-large race under Weslaco's new commission structure. At his swearing-in he said, "I'm here to serve Weslaco. I have an open-door policy."
Sources: The Monitor, City of Weslaco, Hidalgo County
Abad Morales
Not enough info NonpartisanWe found no public record of this candidate's background or positions beyond the ballot.
Sources: Hidalgo County sample ballot
Johnny J. Salinas Jr.
Not enough info NonpartisanWe found no public record of this candidate's background or positions beyond the ballot.
Sources: Hidalgo County sample ballot
School boards
These races are nonpartisan. McAllen, Edinburg and Pharr hold their city elections in May, but a dozen school districts elect trustees this fall.
Contested school board races
Not profiledWe haven't profiled school board candidates yet. On the ballot: Edinburg CISD Place 1 (Gloria Alonzo, Jesus "Jesse" Mata, Dominga "Minga" Vela), Place 2 (Letty Flores, Karla Salinas De Luna), Place 3 (Ronaldo J. Cavazos, Leticia "Letty G" Garcia, Alondra Lizeth Flores), Place 5 (David White, Sandra M. Avila). Pharr-San Juan-Alamo ISD Place 1 (Alexis Saenz, Norma Araceli Cabrera, Jose Angel Flores, Aldina Santillan), Place 2 (Jose Isaac Santa Maria, Roberto F. Loredo, Jose L. Bravo, Romeo Robles), Place 3 (Pete Garcia, Yolanda Castillo, Vittorio "Vitto" Puente, Elizabeth "Dr. C" Chavez). Weslaco ISD Place 4 (Oscar Caballero, Javi Herrera, Andres "Andy" Arredondo), Place 5 (Benjamin "Ben" Castillo, Jeff Everitt), Place 6 (Joel Rivera, Alfredo "Duff" Castaneda), Place 7 (Paula Sanchez, Isidoro Nieto). Donna ISD Place 5 (David R. Yanez Jr., Eloy Avila Jr.), Place 6 (Juan E. Bazan Jr., Ida M. Garcia), Place 7 (Maricela Valdez, Efrain Gomez Jr.). Mercedes ISD Place 1 (Adan Vallejo, Joseph Bay Trevino), Place 2 (Horacio Jeronimo Pequeno, Velda Garcia, Marcos Joaquin Garcia IV), Place 3 (Patti Ross Loya, Cristella Hernandez), Place 4 (Johnny Isaac Gomez, Nancy E. Vallejo). La Joya ISD Place 1 (J.J. Luna Jr., Elias Macias Jr.), Place 3 (Victor M. Garza, Mary T. Hernandez). Hidalgo ISD Place 3 (Martin Carrasco, Pete Sanchez), Place 4 (Diana Garcia, Yesenia Ayala), Place 5 (Ben Arjona, Steven R. Martinez). Edcouch-Elsa ISD Place 1 (Elena Rodriguez, Jesse Ruiz, Roberto Garate Jr.), Place 4 (Fernando "Nano" Torres Jr., Senaida Salinas), Place 5 (Victor L. Hernandez, Celine Perez). La Villa ISD Place 5 (Yesenia Morales, Julissa Lopez, Jose "T-Rex" Ramirez), Place 7 (Martin "Block" Hinojosa, Sonia M. Lopez). Monte Alto ISD Place 7 (Connie Villanueva, Anna Valdez Molina). South Texas ISD, Commissioners Precinct 2 (Cesar G. Castillo, Margarita Garcia).
Unopposed school board seats
No contestLa Joya ISD Place 2 (Servando Ramirez), La Villa ISD Place 6 (Gilberto "Gibby" Hinojosa III), and Monte Alto ISD Places 4 (Ester Cardoza-Wade), 5 (Armando López) and 6 (Johnny Herrera). Valley View ISD canceled its election because all its candidates were unopposed.
State and federal
After the 2025 redistricting, Hidalgo is split between two congressional districts (15 and 28; District 34 no longer reaches Hidalgo ballots) and five Texas House districts. No Texas Senate seat is on Hidalgo ballots this year. House Districts 36 (Sergio Muñoz Jr.) and 39 (Armando "Mando" Martinez) are unopposed. Check the sample ballot lookup to see which races are yours.
U.S. Senator
Vote for oneAlso on the ballot: Ted Brown (Libertarian).
James Talarico
Seems like good people (best choice in this race) DemocratA former teacher who wrote the Texas law capping insulin at $25 a month and co-wrote a ban on police chokeholds.
Sources: Wikipedia
Ken Paxton
Not good people RepublicanSued to throw out four states' 2020 votes and spoke at the January 6 rally, telling the crowd "We will not quit fighting." The Republican-led Texas House impeached him for corruption 121 to 23; the state Senate acquitted him in 2023.
Sources: Wikipedia, Texas Tribune, Al Jazeera, Texas Public Radio
Governor
Vote for oneAlso on the ballot: Pat Dixon (Libertarian).
Gina Hinojosa
Seems like good people (best choice in this race) DemocratA public school advocate who ran the Austin school board before the Legislature.
Sources: Texas Tribune
Greg Abbott
Not good people RepublicanSigned SB 4, which lets state police arrest and deport people on suspicion of illegal entry, and bused more than 100,000 migrants to other cities as a stunt. Also signed the school voucher law.
Sources: Texas Tribune, Wikipedia
Lieutenant Governor
Vote for oneAlso on the ballot: Anthony Cristo (Libertarian), Kevin McCormick (Green).
Vikki Goodwin
Seems like good people (best choice in this race) DemocratRunning on school funding and against vouchers.
Sources: Texas Tribune
Attorney General
Vote for oneAlso on the ballot: Tom Oxford (Libertarian).
Nathan Johnson
Seems like good people (best choice in this race) DemocratHas passed about 134 bills since 2019 and promises to run the AG's office as a law office again instead of a political shop.
Sources: Texas Tribune
Mayes Middleton
Not good people RepublicanCalls himself "MAGA Mayes" and has called 2020 "a stolen election." Beat Chip Roy by attacking him for certifying the 2020 results.
Sources: Texas Tribune, KSAT
Everything else on the statewide ballot
Not profiledComptroller, Land Commissioner, Agriculture Commissioner, Railroad Commissioner, the State Board of Education, and the Supreme Court and appeals court seats. We haven't profiled these yet.
U.S. Representative, District 15
Vote for oneA toss-up. Republicans redrew the district in 2025 so Trump would have carried it by about 18 points.
Bobby Pulido
Seems like good people (best choice in this race) DemocratA self-described moderate who says Trump's deportations went past the "bad guys" and that Valley voters who backed Trump "feel like they were duped." He says he opposes abortion but supports letting women decide for themselves.
Sources: Courier of Montgomery County, Border Report (AP), Texas Public Radio
Monica De La Cruz
Not good people RepublicanCampaigns on Trump's endorsement, which he renewed in a September 18 video. She voted for cuts to SNAP and Medicaid, and told the GOP convention, "We ended the border crisis, we cut your taxes, and we turned a socialist nightmare back into the American Dream."
Sources: Roll Call (Trump video), Roll Call, Texas Public Radio
U.S. Representative, District 28
Vote for oneCovers western Hidalgo County (Mission and La Joya area). Trump pardoned Cuellar in December 2025, then endorsed his opponent.
Marlón Durán
Seems like good people (best choice in this race) GreenSupports Medicare for All and a Green New Deal and pledges not to take PAC money. His campaign says he grew up undocumented in McAllen; a July poll had him at 6%.
Sources: Branch, San Antonio Report
Henry Cuellar
Not good people DemocratWas indicted in 2024 on charges of taking $600,000 in bribes from an Azerbaijani oil company and a Mexican bank, and Trump pardoned him and his wife in December 2025. He was the only House Democrat to vote against the 2021 abortion-rights bill and has long held an "A" rating from the NRA.
Sources: Ballotpedia, Texas Tribune, The Intercept
Tano Tijerina
Not good people RepublicanAccepted Trump's endorsement in January, when Trump said Cuellar "should not be allowed to serve in Congress again."
Sources: NBC News, Ballotpedia
State Representative, District 35
Vote for oneOscar Longoria
Seems like good people (best choice in this race) DemocratLists public safety in coordination with local law enforcement, and education, as his priorities. He chairs the House Subcommittee on Workforce.
Sources: The Ballot Brief, Texas Policy Research
Oscar Rosa
Not enough info RepublicanA pharmacist and small businessman. Gov. Greg Abbott endorsed him when he ran for this seat in 2022, a race he lost, and he hasn't answered the ATPE teacher survey. Wants to "Cut property taxes, lower prescription drug costs, and make health care accessible."
Sources: Greg Abbott campaign, ATPE Teach the Vote, The Ballot Brief
State Representative, District 40
Vote for oneTerry Canales
Seems like good people (best choice in this race) DemocratWas one of the 12 House managers who prosecuted Attorney General Ken Paxton's impeachment in 2023. He led the 2025 Sunset bill for the state prison agency.
Sources: Wikipedia, The Ballot Brief
Celeste Cabrera-Huff
Not enough info RepublicanWon the Republican runoff over Nehemias "Memo" Gomez with about 69%. iVoterGuide lists endorsements from Gov. Greg Abbott and the Republican National Hispanic Assembly. She runs on property tax cuts, telehealth and maternity care, and tougher penalties for repeat domestic violence offenders.
Sources: Branch, iVoterGuide, The Ballot Brief, BallotReady
State Representative, District 41
Vote for oneOpen seat. Rep. Bobby Guerra of Mission is retiring. Trump carried the district with 50.3% in 2024.
Julio Salinas
Seems like good people (best choice in this race) DemocratWants to expand Medicaid, add paid family leave, roll back private school vouchers and raise teacher pay by $15,000. Endorsed by Bernie Sanders; his biggest donor was David Hogg's Leaders We Deserve PAC.
Sources: Texas Observer, KRGV
Gary Groves
Not good people RepublicanA Hidalgo County Republican precinct chair who organized Trump Train rallies, he campaigns in a red MAGA cap and argued the nominee must be a full-fledged MAGA Republican. He won the May runoff over Sergio Sanchez and wants to eliminate property taxes.
Sources: Texas Tribune, Fox RGV, KRGV, The Ballot Brief
Small cities and propositions
We describe what each proposition does and don't make recommendations. Statewide races (U.S. Senate, governor and so on) are in the State and federal section below.
Progreso, Proposition A
Propositions- Prop A: Limits Progreso's mayor and city commission members to two full elected terms, starting with officials elected in November 2026.
Progreso and Edcouch council races
Not profiledNot profiled. Progreso: Mayor (Raul Martinez, Hugo Gamboa), Council Place 4 (Ruben Abundiz, Norberto Rangel), Place 5 (Jimmy Galvan, Stephanie Alegria), Place 6 (Mando Garcia, David Hernandez). Edcouch: Alderman Place 5 (Selma Garcia Morales, Renee Rodriguez).
More Texas guides
Governor, statewide offices and ballot measures: Texas statewide races.
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