Veteran Texas congressman Al Green beaten in Democratic primary runoff
Christian Menefee wins 18th district race after Republican gerrymandering carved up Green’s reliably Democratic seat
Christian Menefee, a freshman Democratic US representative, beat veteran congressman, Al Green, on Tuesday in a fierce runoff that was the product of Republican gerrymandering.
Last year, the Republican-dominated Texas legislature unveiled a congressional map designed to flip seats in the GOP’s favor. Donald Trump had urged the state’s lawmakers to safeguard the party’s congressional majority.
Under the new map, Green, a congressional fixture for more than two decades and a staunch Trump critic, saw his reliably Democratic ninth district effectively eliminated. He announced a bid for the 18th district in November.
Menefee was sworn into the seat in January, after winning a special election to replace Sylvester Turner, the late US representative.
On the campaign trail, Green sought to link Menefee with big-money politics, accusing his challenger of being aligned with “Tru…