AUSTIN, Texas  — The Texas Supreme Court, the state’s court of last resort for civil matters, will likely remain an all-Republican court for now as all three incumbents were headed for wins Wednesday morning. 

What You Need To Know

  • The Texas Supreme Court has nine justices, three of whom ran for reelection with opposition

  • Spectrum News 1 partner the Texas Tribune noted that Democrats targeted the court this election in hopes that backlash over rulings on abortion and LGBTQ+ issues would be enough to break up the Republican hold on the court

  • Republican incumbent Jimmy Blacklock has defeated Democrat DaSean Jones by 58% with almost all of the votes counted

  • Republican incumbent Jane Bland fended off challenges by Democrat Bonnie Lee Goldstein and Libertarian David Roberson, winning over 56% of the vote

According to The Associated Press, Republican incumbent Jimmy Blacklock has defeated Democrat DaSean Jones by 58% with almost all of the votes counted, Republican incumbent John Devine is heading for victory with a sizable lead over Democrat Christine Weems—but the race has yet to be called—and Republican incumbent Jane Bland fended off challenges by Democrat Bonnie Lee Goldstein and Libertarian David Roberson winning over 56% of the vote.

The Texas Supreme Court has nine justices, three of whom ran for reelection with opposition.

Devine was the only justice with a primary challenger. In March, he survived a challenge by Brian Walker, of the Second District Court of Appeals, by 1 percentage point.

Devine has been controversial. He has called church-state separation a “myth,” was the Tea Party candidate for the U.S. Supreme Court in 2022, once called his GOP colleagues “brainwashed” in leaked audio and has claimed he was arrested 37 times at abortion protests in the 1980s.

Weems is a judge on the 281st Civil District Court in Harris County. Her biography says she’s the daughter of immigrants who fled Vietnam when Saigon fell in 1975. Previously a trial attorney in personal injury civil law and civil trial law, in an election ad available on YouTube, Weems says she is a judge “who upholds the law” and lives “by a Texas code of ethics.”

Spectrum News 1 partner the Texas Tribune noted that Democrats targeted the court this election in hopes that backlash over rulings on abortion and LGBTQ+ issues would be enough to break up the Republican hold on the court.

Blacklock was appointed to the Texas Supreme Court by Gov. Greg Abbott in 2018. He previously served as Abbott’s general counsel and in the Attorney General’s Office under then-AG Abbott.

Jones is a district court judge in Harris County. He’s been a judge on the 180th District Court since 2019 and is a veteran. According to his biography, he’s the first combat veteran and minority to preside over the 180th District Court.

Bland has served on the Texas Supreme Court since 2019. Prior to that, she was a justice on the First Court of Appeals for 15 years and served six years as a state district judge.

Dallas Judge Goldstein was elected to the 5th District Court of Appeals in 2020. She was previously the presiding judge on of the 44th Judicial District Court in Dallas County.

Libertarian Roberson has experience working as an attorney and as vice president of operations at Prime Tax Group. He identified the most pressing issues as abortion restrictions and I-35 corridor construction through Austin.