The Winner

If you live in Texas's 18th U.S. House District, you will continue to be represented in Congress by Rep. Christian Menefee (D-TX), who has been declared the winner of the 2026 congressional race, according to the Associated Press. ​

Menefee took about 86.0% of the vote (about 193,149 votes) to roughly 14.0% (about 31,334 votes) for Republican Ronald Whitfield, according to unofficial results as of Nov. 9. That is a margin of about 72 points, or about 161,815 votes.

The win rests on the AP call, and the vote figures are preliminary: the counts are unofficial and may change until the state certifies them.

The Race

Whitfield, the Republican nominee, reached the November ballot by winning the Republican primary on March 3 with 5,257 votes, according to the primary results. Cook Political Report rated the seat Solid Democratic heading into Election Day.

Texas's 18th District has a plurality-Hispanic population, according to Geographies data for the district: about 44.9 percent of residents are Hispanic, about 31.3 percent Black, about 24.8 percent white and about 4.8 percent Asian.

The district has about 791,500 residents, a median household income of about $63,400, and a median age of about 33. About 28.4 percent of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, the unemployment rate is about 7.8 percent, and about 22 percent of residents live below the poverty line.

The district covers parts of Houston, including Sunnyside, Third Ward, Downtown, and Northeast Houston, according to the Houston Chronicle. Houston is its largest city.

What's Next

Menefee is set to take office on Jan. 3, 2027, as set by the 20th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. The Office of Congressman Christian Menefee reported on June 15 that Menefee and Rep. Janelle Bynum introduced the All In for Attendance Act, which would let school districts use federal education funds for evidence-based interventions and support services to address chronic absenteeism.

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