It wasn’t a swift path to victory, but after almost a year of campaigning to represent Houston’s historic Congressional District 18, Christian Menefee handily won the seat Saturday in a runoff with 68 percent of the vote.
Menefee, the former Harris County attorney, earned 16,174 votes over opponent Amanda Edwards’ 7,478 votes. Saturday’s election was to fill the unexpired term of the late former U.S. Rep. Sylvester Turner. A primary election will be held in March for the full term. Menefee, Edwards and longtime Congressman Al Green, who was redistricted out of his District 9 seat, are on the ballot.
In his victory speech, Menefee spoke directly to President Donald Trump: “The results here tonight are a mandate for me to work as hard as I can to oppose your agenda, to fight back against where you’re taking this country and to investigate your crimes,” he said. “I look forward to doing so, if y’all know me.”
Menefee said he anticipates an “immediate” swearing-in ceremony. The timing of the congressman-elect’s arrival in D.C. is crucial for Democrats to have a voice in discussions about immigration reform and affordable healthcare. Saturday’s election reduces an already narrow Republican majority in Congress.
Lawmakers were slated to approve a nearly $1.3 trillion spending bill for defense, health, transportation and housing last week but after the second deadly shooting of an American citizen in Minneapolis by federal immigration authorities, Democrats pledged to withhold support for the package without policy changes on immigration enforcement.
Because Congress didn’t meet a January 30 deadline to pass the spending bill, the government is already in a partial shutdown. The Senate on Friday approved a two-week stopgap bill to fund the Department of Homeland Security, designed to allow lawmakers to negotiate reforms. The House could vote on the measure as early as Monday.
Menefee told reporters on Saturday that he will “fight each and every day to impeach [Homeland Security Secretary] Kristi Noem, to tear ICE up from the roots and to fix this country’s broken immigration system.”
“Somewhere in the 18th Congressional District, there’s an immigrant who’s terrified that masked ICE agents are going to kick in their door and take them back to a land that they haven’t been to for a very long time,” he said. “That’s why, on the campaign trail, I talked about my close family member who, during the course of this campaign, was the victim of a road rage incident and wouldn’t go to the hospital, wouldn’t go to the police because they were worried that they might get deported.”
Menefee also addressed cuts to food stamps and affordable healthcare under the Trump administration.
“I’m going to fight each and every day to strengthen our social safety net and to make sure we’re not cutting any SNAP benefits or any WIC program and that we’re taking care of those families,” he said. “I’m going to fight for Medicare for all, so every single person in this country has healthcare as a right, so nobody has to choose between putting food on the table and getting a life-saving treatment that they need.”
Amanda Edwards issued a statement Saturday morning saying:
“While last night’s results were not what we hoped for, I am deeply grateful to my team and every volunteer, resident, and supporter who believed in this campaign and worked tirelessly to build a grassroots movement to place people over politics in our community. Across this district, voters made clear they are ready to reject extremism and demand leadership that delivers real results for working families.
“I congratulate Christian Menefee on his victory. As the Trump Administration continues to attack our jobs, our schools, and our access to health care, I will keep standing up for this community and pushing for real, common-sense solutions. This fight does not end.”
Menefee’s wife Kaitlyn also addressed the crowd at Saturday’s victory speech.
“I feel like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders, not just as Christian’s wife but as a daughter and lifelong resident of the 18th,” she said. “Tonight a decision was made, and it was the right decision.”
“I just want D.C. to understand that the 18th is coming,” she added. “We are taking our seat back, and Christian Menefee is pulling up to the table.”
The congressman-elect took a parting jab at Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, who delayed the special election several months when he could have called it immediately after Turner’s March 2025 death.
“My message to Greg Abbott is this: You may have delayed this election for nearly a year, but this is the 18th Congressional District of Texas,” Menefee said. “You cannot take our voice. You cannot take our fire. And you cannot take our fight. This district is going to make sure that the entire country knows what you did to our communities.”
This article appears in Private: Jan 1 – Dec 31, 2026.