Texas Republicans have held onto the State Senate District 4 seat with candidate Brett Ligon, unofficial election night results show.
Texas held a special election Saturday, May 2, to fill a vacant seat in the Texas Senate whose term would expire in January 2027. The seat became vacant in October 2025 when the former holder, former Republican State Sen. Brandon Creighton, resigned to become the chancellor of the Texas Tech University System.
On the ballot were only two candidates: Ligon and Democratic candidate Ron Angeletti.
Start the day smarter. Get all the news you need in your inbox each morning.
Once the results are made official, Ligon will represent Texans from Montgomery, Harris, Chambers, Jefferson and Galveston counties in the Texas Senate.
Here's a look at how the night unfolded for Ligon and Angeletti.
Unofficial results show Republican Brett Ligon secures the election
As election night draws to a close, unofficial results from the Texas Secretary of State's election website show Republican candidate Brett Ligon has won the election, with 100% of polling locations reporting by 10:45 p.m.
Unofficial results show Ligon has secured 26,068 votes (75%), with Democratic candidate Ron Angeletti at 8,662 votes (25%). In total, 34,730 votes were cast across all five counties.
Under Texas law, canvassing must happen before the results are made official. For context, canvassing is a post-election process that verifies that all valid ballots cast are accurately counted and included in the final election result.
While Ligon will finish out the unexpired term of the seat’s former holder, which will end in January 2027, he will face Angeletti in a rematch in November 2026 for a full four-year term that begins after Ligon's current term expires.
Two of five counties have reported all polling locations
According to the Texas Secretary of State’s website, as of 10 p.m., Jefferson and Chambers counties have reported 100% of their polling locations. The other three counties — Montgomery, Harris and Galveston — are still reporting returns.
Unofficial results show Democratic candidate Ron Angeletti secured 67.16% of the 2,570 votes cast in Jefferson County.
In Chambers County, Republican candidate Brett Ligon secured 90.61% of the 2,300 votes cast.
With 73.21% of the votes counted so far, the current election overall breakdown is:
- Ligon (R) — 75% (23,927 votes).
- Angeletti (D) — 25% (8,010 votes).
Republican candidate holds strong as counting continues
Two hours after the polls closed at 7 p.m., Republican candidate Brett Ligon has held on to his strong lead over Democratic candidate Ron Angeletti, with 26,647 votes having been counted so far.
The current breakdown is:
- Ligon (R) — 75% (20,042 votes).
- Angeletti (D) — 25% (6,605 votes).
All five counties are starting to report results
As if 8:30 p.m. Central Time, all five counties in this election are reporting voting numbers as of 8:30 p.m. Central Time.
With only 8.04% of the 112 polling sites reporting, here is the breakdown of how many votes the two candidates have received so far.
- Ligon (R) — 76% (19,703 votes).
- Angeletti (D) — 24% (6,272 votes).
- Total counted votes so far — 25,975.
Republican candidate takes early lead as votes are counted
As of 8 p.m. CT, the Texas Secretary of State reports that Republican candidate Brett Ligon has claimed an early lead, with 76% of the vote, based on 2.68% of votes reported so far.
Democratic candidate Ron Angeletti is coming in with 24% of the vote.
Who was on the ballot?
There are only two names on the ballot — Republican candidate Brett Ligon and Democratic candidate Ron Angeletti.
Creighton has endorsed Ligon to fill his seat.
What was the vacant seat?
The seat had been held by former Republican State Sen. Brandon Creighton for over 10 years before he vacated it to become the new chancellor of the Texas Tech University System in October 2025.
Mateo Rosiles is the Texas Connect reporter for USA TODAY and its regional papers in Texas. Got a news tip for him? Email him at mrosiles@usatodayco.com.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Republican Brett Ligon wins Texas state special election. See results
