The Tarrant County Democratic Party challenged the eligibility of all 41 Republican judicial candidates and two for Texas House in the March 3 primary election, seeking to remove all 43 from the ballot.
Democrats announced they formally challenged the filings Tuesday morning, alleging that the candidates submitted applications with multiple errors. The action came roughly a week after local Republican Party chairman Tim Davis challenged seven Democratic candidates.
“These aren’t minor errors,” Allison Campolo, chair of the Tarrant County Democratic Party, said in a press release. “We’re talking about petitions that don’t meet basic legal requirements, even though it’s very clear about what is needed for a candidate to appear on the ballot.”
To run for a judicial position in Tarrant County, candidates must collect at least 250 voters’ signatures on a petition in support of their candidacy. In lieu of paying a filing fee, candidates can collect a total of 750 signatures.
Campolo alleged some GOP election applications had altered candidate information, incomplete or missing voter signature information and missing details as well as redacted public information such as signers’ birthdays.
Davis, the GOP chair, said in a statement that Republicans received the challenges and are beginning their review.
“From the first pass, it appears the Democrats were about as sloppy with their challenge as they were with their original filings,” Davis wrote, adding that he noticed several typos, formatting issues and legal errors in the Democrats’ challenges.
Allison Campolo, right, takes a selfie with Crystal Gayden, then-chair of the Tarrant County Democratic Party, in 2023. Campolo preceded Gayden as party chair and returned to the seat after Gayden’s resignation. (Courtesy photo | Allison Campolo)
Tarrant County Republican chairman Tim Davis speaks at a county GOP executive committee meeting on Jan. 8, 2026, in Fort Worth. (Drew Shaw | Fort Worth Report)
The majority of the challenged candidates are running for the 39 judicial and justice of the peace positions in Tarrant County up for grabs in November. One seat has multiple Republican candidates contending, and all but three of those positions are held by Republican incumbents. Democrats have 17 candidates running for those spots.
If any of either party’s candidates are removed from the March ballot, leaving them without a November nomination, the parties’ executive committees can select replacement nominees.
Those wishing to appear on the November ballot can file as a write-in candidate in races that saw candidates declared ineligible.
If Republicans find the Democrats’ assertions to be true, they are responsible for removing those candidates from the ballot.
Candidates deemed ineligible couldn’t refile for election as the deadline was Dec. 8. The deadline to challenge a candidate’s place on the ballot was Jan. 12.
The two Texas House candidates challenged by the Democrats are running for House District 92, the seat held by Rep. Bhojani Salman (D-Euless); and House District 94, held by Rep. Tony Tinderholt (R-Arlington), who isn’t seeking reelection.
Campolo told the Report the move was not made in retaliation to Davis’ challenges last week, as her team planned to look at the GOP’s applications and requested the materials in mid-December.
Still, she admitted the Democratic Party’s scrutiny increased after Davis’ challenges.
“Truly, we have him to thank for helping us get so many folks helping us on this,” she said. “And we have him to thank for essentially expertly training our volunteers on what to look for in candidate petitions.”
Davis said Democrats appeared to copy language he had used in his challenges. He added that Republicans are “honored to note this is just another area where Democrats have shown they have no original ideas.”
Campolo previously said in a statement that her team was “carefully” reviewing the Democratic filings that Davis had challenged.
Which Republican candidates did the Tarrant County Democratic Party challenge?
Judicial:
- Deborah “Debbie” Adame, candidate for the 231st District Court
- Doug Allen, candidate for Tarrant County Criminal District Court No. 3
- Katherine Allen, candidate for the 324th District Court
- Amy Allin, candidate for the 297th District Court
- Leslie Barrows, candidate for the 231st District Court
- Norma Bazan, candidate for Tarrant County Criminal Court No. 4
- Brook Bell, candidate for Tarrant County Probate Court No. 2
- Brian Bolton, candidate for Tarrant County Criminal Court No. 9
- Bill Brandt, candidate for Justice of the Peace, Precinct 3
- Patricia Burns, candidate for Tarrant County Probate Court No. 1
- Jason Charbonnet, candidate for Justice of the Peace, Precinct 6
- John Chupp, candidate for the 141st District Court
- Brad Clark, candidate for Tarrant County Criminal Court No. 5
- David Cook, candidate for Tarrant County Criminal Court No. 1
- Mary Curnutt, candidate for Justice of the Peace, Precinct 2
- Rashelle Fetty, candidate for the 231st District Court
- Dusty Fillmore, candidate for the 236th District Court
- Christopher Gregory, candidate for Justice of the Peace, Precinct 4
- Randi Hartin, candidate for Tarrant County Criminal Court No. 6
- Ryan Hill, candidate for the 371st District Court
- Mike Hrabal, candidate for Tarrant County Court at Law No. 3
- An Lee “Andy” Hsu, candidate for the 324th District Court
- Steven Jumes, candidate for the 323rd District Court
- Alexander Kim, candidate for the 323rd District Court
- Trent Loftin, candidate for Tarrant County Criminal Court No. 10
- Julie Lugo, candidate for the 372nd District Court
- Bob McCoy, candidate for Tarrant County Criminal Court No. 3
- James Munford, candidate for the 322nd District Court
- Deborah Nekhom, candidate for Tarrant County Criminal Court No. 4
- Kenneth Newell, candidate for the 233rd District Court
- Paige Payne-Neal, candidate for Justice of the Peace, Precinct 7
- Don Pierson, candidate for Tarrant County Court at Law No. 1
- Andy Porter, candidate for Tarrant County Criminal District Court No. 4
- Ricky Rodriguez, candidate for Justice of the Peace, Precinct 1
- Jennifer Rymell, candidate for Tarrant County Court at Law No. 2
- Lee Sorrells, candidate for the 432nd District Court
- Eric Starnes, candidate for Tarrant County Court at Law No. 2
- Cynthia Terry, candidate for the 325th District Court
- Charles Vanover, candidate for Tarrant County Criminal Court No. 8
- Sherri Wagner, candidate for Tarrant County Criminal District Court No. 1
- Carey Walker, candidate for Tarrant County Criminal District Court No. 2
Texas House:
- Joseph Robinson, candidate for House District 92
- Susan Valliant, candidate for State House District 94
Drew Shaw is a government accountability reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at drew.shaw@fortworthreport.org or @shawlings601.
At the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here.
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