Texas Democrats Goodwin, Vélez hope to keep voters engaged ahead of lieutenant governor runoff

After busting through turnout expectations for the party primaries, can Texas Democrats keep up that momentum for May's runoff elections? Beyond that, will voters turn that attention and enthusiasm to races they hadn't been following before?

State Rep. Vikki Goodwin and labor organizer Marcos Vélez, the Democratic candidates vying to challenge incumbent Republican Lt. Gov Dan Patrick, certainly hope so. The pair face off in a May 26 runoff to decide who will be the party's nominee for lieutenant governor this November.

For the primaries, many of the state's Democrats came to the polls focused on one race: The closely watched U.S. Senate primary between U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett and state Rep. James Talarico.

"What I found as I was standing at the polls is that a lot of people came knowing about who was in that race, but not necessarily knowing a lot of the other candidates," said Goodwin, a four-term Texas House member from Travis County. "Including mine."

Why the Lieutenant Governor of Texas is so important 

In Texas, the lieutenant governor's office has been held by a Republican since 1999. It's also considered to be one of the state's most influential and consequential positions.

In fact, the Texas Lieutenant Governor is "thought of as as powerful, and sometimes more powerful than the governor," Brandon Rottinghaus, a political scientist at the University of Houston, told The Texas Newsroom.

That's partly because the Lt. Gov. is the person deciding which bills make it onto the floor of the Texas Senate.

Compared to the governor, "the lieutenant governor has much more power to implement in a more direct way — to move actionable policy," said Sergio Garcia-Rios, a professor at University of Texas' LBJ School of Public Affairs.

Dan Patrick has held the office since 2015, notably winning the general election after beating out the Republican incumbent in the party's 2014 primaries. He easily won his primary earlier this month, much like he comfortably won reelection four years ago with more than 80% of the vote.

Patrick also comes into 2026 with a large advantage in campaign cash on hand — nearly $38 million — and strong name recognition after over a decade in office.

About an hour after polls closed in El Paso for the March 3 party primaries, Patrick posted on social media to celebrate.

"The best is yet to come for the Lone Star State," wrote Patrick. "Now on to the general!"

The Democratic candidates' name recognition problem

That brings us back to the big question for Texas Democrats looking to May's runoffs: Will voters show up without a high profile race — and names — on the ballot like Crockett and Talarico?

While the party's statewide runoffs are for important roles, Texas Lieutenant Governor included, there just isn't the same star-power helping to turn out the vote.

For Goodwin's part, she may have served four terms in the statehouse, but she has little name recognition outside her Travis County Texas House district. Goodwin's most recent campaign finance report shows she has around $160,000 in cash on hand. That puts her at a significant disadvantage against Patrick in November, but at an advantage over her opponent.

Vélez, who's running as the union-friendly candidate, has significantly less in his campaign war chest. Many observers of Texas politics expected Goodwin to win the nomination outright. But the Houston-area candidate snagged the endorsement of the Texas AFL-CIO, something he credits with drawing more votes his way during the Democratic primary.

Additionally, Vélez has said being the "lowest net worth candidate on the ballot" is something he thinks aligns him with voters. He reiterated that statement on a call with reporters once it was clear he was heading for the runoffs.

"When I talk about the experience on the campaign trail, I understand their struggles because I've lived them," he said. "I think that's what resonates most with working people."

Vélez believes that is what will set him apart for voters ahead of May's runoff, while Goodwin believes her years of legislative experience gives her an advantage.

"I think we need somebody stepping into the role of lieutenant governor who understands the legislature, who knows what it takes to get bills passed," Goodwin told The Texas Newsroom. "Who knows the people that will be there in the Senate and in the House so that we can work together well."

She added Vélez would need, "on-the-job training if elected," something she thinks would make it difficult to lead the Texas Senate.

While Goodwin received a majority of the vote in the Democratic primary, 48%, Vélez believes his 31% showing happened because his name recognition is still considerably lower. But he believes getting face time with voters before May will change that.

"Every single part of the state where we were able to spend significant time, we were to successfully win that area," Vélez said.

Between now and the runoffs, his campaign plans to visit those areas again, plus other regions where he wasn't as successful.

Early voting for the Texas primary runoffs will take place from May 18 to May 22, and Election Day is May 26.

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