Texas Democratic primary runoff picks nominee for lieutenant governor race

DALLAS — Texas Democratic voters selected state Rep. Vikki Goodwin as their nominee for lieutenant governor Tuesday night, defeating Marcos Vélez in the party’s primary runoff and setting up a November showdown against Republican incumbent Dan Patrick.

The contest became a test of what direction Texas Democrats want to take in the general election.

Goodwin, who took office in 2019, campaigned on boosting public school funding and teacher pay, expanding Medicaid, investing in water infrastructure and repealing Texas’ abortion ban.

Meanwhile, Vélez, who worked in Texas refineries and is a member of the United Steelworkers union, centered his campaign on property tax relief, raising the minimum wage and affordability measures aimed at working families and seniors.

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The lieutenant governor’s office presides over the Senate, controls the chamber’s agenda, appoints committee chairs and can break tie votes — powers that give the position major influence over which bills reach the governor’s desk.

The lieutenant governor also helps craft the state budget as co-chair of the Legislative Budget Board and serves on the Legislative Redistricting Board, which redraws political maps if lawmakers fail to do so.

Polls closed across Texas at 7 p.m. Tuesday, with turnout expected to be significantly lower than during the March primary election.

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During his decade as lieutenant governor, Patrick has pushed the Legislature steadily to the right and built a strong network of Republican allies within the Senate. Political observers say his defeat in November would create a major power vacuum in Texas Republican politics and significantly reshape dynamics inside the Legislature.

Still, while the lieutenant governor currently holds sweeping authority, much of that power comes from Senate rules approved at the start of each legislative session.

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If a Democrat were to win office in November, the Republican-controlled Senate could move to rewrite those rules and reduce the lieutenant governor’s powers, potentially altering how the chamber operates.