2014 Texas Attorney General election explained

The 2014 Texas Attorney General election took place on November 4, 2014, to elect the Attorney General of Texas. Incumbent Republican Attorney General Greg Abbott was eligible to seek re-election to a fourth term, but instead decided to run for governor. Republican state senator Ken Paxton defeated Democratic attorney Sam Houston with 58.81% of the vote.^[2]

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Ken Paxton, state senator^[3]

Eliminated in primary

• Dan Branch, state representative^[4]
• Barry Smitherman, chairman of the Railroad Commission of Texas^[5]

Declined

• Greg Abbott, incumbent attorney general (running for governor)^[6]

Polling

Poll source	Date(s)administered	Samplesize	Margin oferror	DanBranch	KenPaxton	BarrySmitherman	Other	Undecided
UoT/Texas Tribune[7]	February 7–17, 2014	461	± 4.56%	align="center"	42%	align="center"	38%	20%	—	—
UoT/Texas Tribune[8]	October 18–27, 2013	519	± 5.02%	5%	align="center"	10%	align="center"	11%	—	align="center"	74%

Runoff results

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Sam Houston, attorney and nominee for Texas Supreme Court Justice Place 7 in 2008^[9]

Results

Libertarian primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Jamie Balagia^[10]

Eliminated in primary

• Tom Glass, Vice Chair of the Libertarian Party of Texas^[11]

Green primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Jamar Osborne^[12]

General election

Polling

Poll source	Date(s)administered	Samplesize	Margin oferror	KenPaxton (R)	SamHouston (D)	Other	Undecided
UoT/Texas Tribune[13]	October 10–19, 2014	866	± 3.6%	align="center"	54%	34%	12%	—
UoT/Texas Tribune[14]	May 30–June 8, 2014	1,200	± 2.83%	align="center"	40%	27%	6%	27%

Results

See also

• Texas Attorney General

Notes and References

1. Web site: Turnout and Voter Registration Figures (1970-current). www.sos.state.tx.us. September 6, 2024.
2. Web site: Results .
3. Web site: November 22, 2013 . Republican Attorney General Candidate Ken Paxton Eats With Racist Blog's Owner . November 24, 2013 . Burnt Orange Report.
4. Web site: November 13, 2013 . Cruz to the finish line? Dallas Rep. Dan Branch joins Texas attorney general race . November 24, 2013 . Dallas Culture Map.
5. News: November 20, 2013 . Texas AG Candidate Barry Smitherman Can Shoot All the Guns . November 24, 2013 . Dallas Observer.
6. Web site: Hoppe . Christy . July 14, 2013 . Greg Abbott makes it official: He's running for governor of Texas . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20160303181519/http://trailblazersblog.dallasnews.com/2013/07/greg-abbott-makes-it-official-hes-running-for-governor.html/ . March 3, 2016 . July 15, 2013.
7. http://s3.amazonaws.com/static.texastribune.org/media/documents/utttpoll-201402-1summary.pdf UoT/Texas Tribune
8. http://www.texastribune.org/2013/11/04/uttt-poll-governor-race-abbott-leads-davis-6/ UoT/Texas Tribune
9. Web site: November 22, 2013 . Attorney Sam Houston files for attorney general . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20131202225027/http://www.myfoxhouston.com/story/24034389/attorney-sam-houston-files-for-attorney-general . December 2, 2013 . November 24, 2013 . My Fox Houston.
10. https://www.mysanantonio.com/news/article/Texas-lawyer-found-guilty-of-scamming-more-than-14636678.php Texas lawyer found guilty of scamming more than $1 million from Colombian drug lords
11. News: June 26, 2013 . Libertarian Kathie Glass Announces Bid for Governor . October 5, 2013 . The Texas Tribune.
12. Web site: 2014 Texas Statewide Candidates . October 5, 2013 . Burnt Orange Report.
13. http://s3.amazonaws.com/static.texastribune.org/media/documents/uttt-oct14-summary-2.pdf UoT/Texas Tribune
14. http://s3.amazonaws.com/static.texastribune.org/media/documents/uttt-jun2014-summary-1.pdf UoT/Texas Tribune