At least a quarter of Texas’ congressional delegation is retiring next year, a massive departure that will weaken the state’s clout in the U.S. House and force its members to rebuild Texas’ oft-cited prestige on Capitol Hill.
The numbers: Nine members of Congress from Texas — six Republicans and three Democrats — have announced they will depart at the end of this term. In addition, four incumbents are facing serious primary challengers. The new representative from Texas’s 18th Congressional District, who will be elected in a Jan. 30 runoff, will face either a primary with U.S. Rep. Al Green or abort their short-lived congressional career, guaranteeing at least one more departure.
In total, between 10 and 17 Texas members could end up leaving next year.
The impact: The rush for the exits in 2026 will at least tie the delegation’s record for departures in the past 50 years — 10 members retired or lost reelection in 2018 — if not surpass it.
And the turnover will issue a blow to Texas’ sway in the lower chamber, which in many ways has yet to recover from the exodus of high-profile Republicans during President Donald Trump's first term.
The power struggle: Texas’s political power in the House is tied to its quantity of members. The state sends 38 representatives to Congress, more than any state but California, and contributes the greatest number of members — 25 — to the Republican conference.
That number is set to grow come 2026, as Texas Republi- cans look to flip five seats they
redrew this summer. But their power has waned in recent years, as long-tenured members in both parties have left, and the Republican center of gravity has shifted from Texas to Florida, Trump’s adopted home.
At the start of Trump’s first term, seven Texans chaired House committees, giving the state influence over tax policy, the military, border security and banks.
But now, the state is down to control of just three House committees.
The next steps: New members — in both parties — will be starting from scratch, at the bottom of committee rosters and unlikely to have much say on major legislation or on leadership’s thinking. U.S. Rep.
Pete Sessions, R-Waco, said he has spoken to several candidates running for the House and advised them to be team players if they get elected.
Texas’s ability to rebuild its clout, he said, hinges on new delegation members being willing to cooperate.
