Acting County Judge Kyle Kacal turned his temporary title into a near lock on the job, cruising past Mike Southerland in Brazos County’s March 3 Republican primary. Unofficial returns show Kacal winning by roughly 10,400 to 6,300 votes in a race that, thanks to a lack of Democratic opposition in November, was effectively the main event. Down the ballot, Republicans also settled a Justice of the Peace contest and set up a May 26 runoff that will decide who runs the district clerk’s office.
Kacal wins GOP nod
With all 88 precincts reporting, Kacal pulled in 10,404 votes, about 62 percent, while Southerland finished with 6,343 votes, or 38 percent, securing the Republican spot on the November ballot, according to Community Impact. Because no Democrat filed for county judge, that margin makes the GOP primary the deciding contest for who will lead Brazos County from the courthouse.
District clerk heads to runoff
The Republican race for district clerk did not wrap up so cleanly. Wayland Van Nest led the three-way field with 7,162 votes, or 44.18 percent, while incumbent Gabriel Garcia followed with 5,175 votes, 31.92 percent, and Rudy Schultz received 3,873 votes, 23.89 percent, according to final unofficial totals reported by WTAW. Because no one cleared the required 50 percent, Van Nest and Garcia are headed to a runoff on May 26, 2026.
Other local outcomes
In the Justice of the Peace, Precinct 3 race, Kim Russell coasted to victory with 2,430 votes, roughly 74 percent of the total, according to Community Impact. In the contest for county Republican chair, Russell Ford defeated Silas Garrett 8,308 votes to 6,223. Community Impact also reports that all Brazos County Democratic chair contests were uncontested, so party leadership on that side of the aisle will stay the same through November.
Turnout and what’s next
Elections administrator Trudy Hancock told local media that 17,803 voters cast early ballots, with Republicans accounting for about 10,032 and Democrats 7,771, an uptick in early participation compared with 2024, according to WTAW. Those election night numbers are still unofficial and must be canvassed and finalized, a process that can include late-arriving mail ballots and provisional ballots. Statewide primary results are not truly locked in until the official canvass, as explained by Votebeat.
Kacal has been serving as acting county judge since last summer, after Duane Peters stepped back from the role for medical reasons, a circumstance that gave Kacal some built-in name recognition heading into the race, according to reporting by KBTX. With the first round of voting now wrapped and the unofficial tally on the books, candidates and party officials are shifting their attention to the May 26 runoff and the canvass that will turn Tuesday night’s numbers into the official record.
