The new Texas congressional map that kicked off a nationwide redistricting fight last year was designed to boost Republicans in the midterm elections. First, in the primaries, the map is pitting the newest Democrat in Congress against one of his longest-serving colleagues in a primary.
Rep. Christian Menefee took office this month after he won a late January special election to fill the Houston-based seat of Rep. Sylvester Turner, who died last year. But because of the new congressional maps, Menefee is running for a full term in a district composed of a mostly new group of voters. Meanwhile, Rep. Al Green is running in the same district after the Legislature redrew his longtime seat to lean more Republican.
It's not the only awkward primary matchup forged in part by redistricting. Democratic former Rep. Colin Allred, who endorsed current Democratic Rep. Julie Johnson to succeed him in a Dallas-based district in 2024, is now challenging Johnson after a redistricting shuffle that led two other Democrats from the metro area to leave their seats and Allred to leave the Senate race to seek election to the House once again.
The race between Johnson and Allred has heated up over stock trading and immigration enforcement, while Menefee and Green's has been fueled by calls for generational change. The primaries Tuesday highlight some of the issues that will echo through Democratic primaries around the country all year.
But the matchups have their roots in redistricting, which occasionally pits incumbents against each other — though usually only once every 10 years, after a census. Early voting in Texas has already begun as voters decide which members of Congress they want to keep.
“I think that we should always acknowledge and start from the premise that this is what the Trump administration wanted,” Allred said. “They wanted to draw districts together to force Democrats to run against each other. They wanted to sow division and reduce representation, and that’s what their aim was.”
Allred and Johnson are the best-known Democrats in the race, in addition to progressive attorney Zeeshan Hafeez and business owner Carlos Quintanilla, a perennial candidate. That means Allred is running against his endorsed successor.
Johnson said, “I think that it’s a little awkward, but at the end of the day, he made this choice.”
In December, Allred dropped out of the Democratic Senate primary to run for the House, leaving the race to U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett and state Rep. James Talarico.
“I know Dallas, and Dallas knows me,” Allred said.
Menefee said he hasn’t had any “in-depth conversations” with Green even as they see each other on the House floor. Green and other House Democrats from Texas stood behind Menefee when Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., swore him in.
“It’s an uncomfortable position to be in,” he said.
A spokesperson didn’t make Green available for an interview. In a recent interview with KRIV-TV of Houston reporter Greg Groogan, Green said that he has proven himself in Congress, including through his seniority on the Financial Services Committee, and that he is an “unbought and unbossed” Democrat.
“You don’t get there by showing up in Congress. You’ve got to be there, and you’ve got to serve,” Green said. “I’ve proven myself in Congress.”
Green, who is 79 years old and was first elected to the House in 2004, addressed concerns about his age and said he has delivered for his district.
“They’re saying that I’m too old. Well, I wasn’t too old to bring the federal judges. I’m not too old to bring the billions of dollars,” he said.
On Tuesday, Green was ejected from the State of the Union address as he protested President Donald Trump with a sign reading "Black People Aren't Apes." It was the second straight year he has been ejected from Trump's address to Congress.
Menefee, 37, who was the Harris County attorney from 2021 to 2026, was just sworn in on Feb. 2. He said it has been “hectic” trying to balance both being a new member of Congress elected partway through a term and staying active on the campaign trail for a full term.
