The results are in. (( I get my results from the Secretary of State’s website. ))
Supreme Court
Justice Don Willett and John Devine (who beat the incumbent, Justice Medina, in the primary) were both running without a Democratic opponent. Justice Willett won with 78.8% and Devine won with 75% of the vote.
The seat contested by both major parties was between Justice Hecht and Michele Petty. Justice Hecht won 53.7% of the vote to Petty’s 41.9%, with the remaining 4% going to third-party candidates.
The Court remains at eight Justices because of Justice Wainwright’s departure. Now that these elections are settled, we may see the Governor choose a new appointment to the Court from the pool of justices in the courts of appeals (creating, in turn, an appointment possibility on that appellate court).
With that in mind:
Courts of Appeals
The outcomes in these races varied greatly depending on the geography of each district — and much less candidate to candidate. In most districts, that resulted in a one-party sweep. In one, it resulted in some very close contests.
Austin Court
In my local Austin Court, the Republicans swept with winning vote totals in a fairly consistent range between 51.7% and 53.8%.
The incumbents Justice Puryear, Justice Pemberton, and Justice Rose won reelection. The Democratic incumbent up for reelection, Justice Diane Henson, lost to Scott Field by 51.7% to 48.3%.
San Antonio Court
If you’re looking for courts divided along party lines, then “The San Antonio Court is the new Austin Court.”
Five of the Court’s seven seats were up in this election cycle, with each previously held by a Republican. The outcomes were split 3-2 in favor of Democratic candidates.
The closest race was divided by about 1%, with incumbent Republican Justice Marialyn Barnard defeating Baldemar Garza (50.5% – 49.5%).
Republican incumbent justices Rebecca Simmons, Steve Hilbig, and Phylis Speedlin each lost reelection. (The Democratic candidates winning those seats were Patricia Alvarez, Luz Elena Chapa, and Rebecca Martinez.)
A fifth Republican incumbent, Karen Angelini, won reelection with 51.8% of the vote.
Houston (1st and 14th Courts)
For the First Court, there were five seats up for election, all held by Republicans. Each won reelection — with vote totals falling in the range 53.3% to 53.8%.
For the (geographically identical) Fourteenth Court, there were four seats up for election, with three held by Republican incumbents and one open seat. The Republicans won each seat, in a slightly wider range of votes (52.3% to 54.3%).
The winners were Justice Jane Bland (1st), Justice Harvey Brown (1st), Justice Rebeca Huddle (1st), Justice Terry Jennings (1st), Justice Michael Massengale (1st), Justice Jeff Brown (14th), Justice Brett Busby (14th), Justice Martha Hill Jamison (14th), and John Donovan (14th – open seat).
Dallas
The five seats up for election in the Dallas Court all went to Republicans, with the winning vote totals in this region falling in a very tight range between 52.3% to 53.1%.
Three Republican incumbents won reelection: Justice Jim Moseley, Justice Douglas Lang, and Justice Bob Fillmore.
Winning election for the first time to the court were David Lewis and David Evans.
Corpus Christi-Edinburg
In this appellate district, three seats were up for election. The Democratic candidates won with vote totals ranging from 57.6% to 59.6%.
Nora Longoria defeated Tom Greenwell (59.6%-40.4%) for the one open seat (which had been held by Justice Rose Vela). Justice Nelda Rodriguez and Justice Gina Benavides won reelection.
Other Courts
On the Texarkana Court, Republican incumbent Bailey Moseley won reelection with 72% of the vote.
On the El Paso Court, the Democratic candidate Yvonne Rodriguez defeated the incumbent Republican Chris Antcliff with 62% of the vote. (Antcliff had been appointed to this court in October 2011.)