Primary voters in Harris County sent both parties’ races for county judge to runoff elections Tuesday, and the contest for chairman of the Harris County Republican Party is also headed to a second round after incumbent Cindy Siegel fell short of the majority required to win outright.
With Democrat County Judge Lina Hidalgo not seeking reelection, the open seat drew crowded fields on both sides and produced no majority winners.
On the Republican side, former Houston City Council member Orlando Sanchez finished first in the GOP primary with 47,416 votes (26 percent), while businessman Warren Howell finished second with 37,256 votes (21 percent), according to totals reported by ABC13 Houston with 100 percent of precincts reporting. With neither candidate surpassing the 50 percent threshold in the six-candidate field, Sanchez and Howell will advance to a runoff to determine the Republican nominee.
Sanchez previously served as Harris County treasurer and represented an at-large seat on the Houston City Council. Howell campaigned on issues including public safety, fiscal restraint, and local government accountability.
On the Democrat side, former Houston Mayor Annise Parker finished first with 155,751 votes (47 percent), while former Houston City Councilmember Letitia Plummer placed second with 124,577 votes (37 percent), according to totals reported by ABC13 Houston. As neither candidate received more than half the vote, Parker and Plummer will face each other in a runoff election.
Parker served as mayor of Houston from 2010 to 2016 after previously serving as city controller and on the Houston City Council. Plummer, a dentist by training, served as an at-large member of Houston City Council before launching her campaign for county judge.
Meanwhile, the race for chair of the Harris County Republican Party also failed to produce an outright winner. According to vote totals reported by ABC13 Houston, 170,172 votes were cast in the contest with 100 percent of precincts reporting. Incumbent Cindy Siegel received 84,458 votes, while challenger Don Hooper received 56,251 votes.
Although some results rounded Siegel’s share to 50 percent, the vote totals show she did not receive a majority. Under Texas primary rules, a candidate must receive more than half the vote to win outright. With 170,172 total votes cast, Siegel would have needed 85,087 votes to clear that threshold, leaving her 629 votes short and sending her to a runoff against Hooper.
Siegel has served as chair of the Harris County Republican Party since 2020 and previously served as mayor of Bellaire and on the Bellaire City Council. Hooper has been active in local Republican Party politics and campaigned on expanding grassroots involvement within the party.
Runoff elections for these contests are scheduled for May 26, when voters will determine the party nominees for Harris County judge and decide the next chair of the Harris County Republican Party.
