Democrats Win Both Contested El Paso Judge Races

Chris Anchondo and Bernardo Cruz won El Paso County district court seats, marking the first contested judicial races on the county ballot since 2008.

Updated on Nov. 4, 2026 in Elections

Democrats Win Both Contested El Paso Judge Races

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Democrat Chris Anchondo defeated appointed Republican incumbent Ben Ivey for the 120th District Court, and Democrat Bernardo Cruz defeated Republican R. Wayne Pritchard for the 168th District Court. Democrats also ran unopposed in seven other district court races on the Nov. 3 ballot.

Why it matters

The results extend Democratic dominance in El Paso judicial elections, where only one Republican, Ward Koehler in 1982, has won a district judgeship since 1900. The outcome shapes which party controls the local district bench for the coming term.

Early-vote shares of more than 70% for both Anchondo and Cruz were measured against a prior-race average Democratic margin of 29 percentage points. Final vote totals for each contest were not included in the source extraction.

The players

Greg Abbott

Texas governor who appointed Ben Ivey to the 120th District Court in February 2025, serving as the state's chief executive and head of its appointment power for vacant judicial seats.

Chris Anchondo

Democratic candidate who won the 120th District Court seat after defeating appointed incumbent Ben Ivey in the general election.

Bernardo Cruz

Democratic candidate who won the 168th District Court seat after defeating Republican R. Wayne Pritchard, and who previously worked for farmworkers in Washington state.

The details

Anchondo defeated attorney Leonard Morales in the March Democratic primary before winning the general election. Cruz defeated Enrique Holguin in the May Democratic runoff; the 168th seat opened after incumbent Marcos Lizarraga lost a March Democratic primary bid for a county court judgeship.

February 2025: Gov. Greg Abbott appointed Ben Ivey to the 120th District Court.
March 2026: Anchondo defeated Morales in the Democratic primary.
May 2026: Cruz defeated Holguin in the Democratic runoff.
November 3, 2026: General election results placed Democrats in both contested seats.

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Historical Pattern

Only one Republican, Ward Koehler in 1982, has won an El Paso County district judgeship since 1900, so the Democratic sweep of both contested seats continues a one-party pattern in local judicial elections. The result follows the 2008 ballot, the last time El Paso County featured contested district judge races.

Each contested race winner will earn $193,000 annually over a four-year Texas district judge term. Residents with cases before the 120th or 168th District Court will see the newly elected judges take the bench under the state's four-year term structure.

The takeaway

Judicial races in El Paso County are decided by party primaries more often than by the general election, so the March and May Democratic contests effectively determined these two seats.