Trump-backed Jon Bonck and Shelly deZevallos will face off in a May 26 runoff after neither cleared 50% in Tuesday’s Republican primary for Texas’s 38th Congressional District. The open, Houston-area seat was left on the table when Rep. Wesley Hunt opted to run for U.S. Senate, setting up a summer showdown to decide who likely goes to Congress next, as reported by ABC13 Houston.
Early returns put Bonck at roughly 47% of the vote, or about 28,684 ballots, with deZevallos sitting around 19%, or 11,528 votes, according to ABC13 Houston. With no candidate hitting a majority, the top two now head to a runoff on May 26.
Money and endorsements
Bonck ran with the political heavyweights behind him. President Donald Trump and U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz both lined up in his corner, a pair of marquee endorsements that helped him muscle past a crowded Republican field, as reported by the Houston Chronicle.
On the money side, federal filings and campaign finance aggregators show Bonck’s committee pulling in just over $1 million this cycle, while deZevallos reported roughly $765,000. That financial edge is likely to shape how each campaign talks to voters and buys ad time heading into May, according to Capitol Hill Access.
Who they are
Bonck, a mortgage loan officer and Baptist deacon, campaigned on cutting red tape to boost home ownership in the district. His pitch has focused on bringing down barriers for families trying to buy a house and tying that to the broader economic health of northwest Harris County.
DeZevallos is a fifth-generation Texan who runs her family’s West Houston Airport and previously served as a vice chair of the Harris County GOP. She wrote on social media that she was “born here, raised my family here” and has spent more than two decades working at the grassroots level, as reported by Houston Public Media. Bonck’s campaign, for its part, cast the primary result as proof of momentum and broad grassroots support.
What’s next
The runoff is scheduled for May 26, 2026, according to the Texas Secretary of State. Hunt’s Senate run is what opened the 38th District seat in the first place, a move detailed by the Houston Chronicle.
On the other side of the aisle, Democrat Melissa McDonough won her party’s primary with about 52% of the vote, according to ABC13 Houston. But the redrawn 38th District leans Republican under the new map, making the GOP runoff the main event to watch this spring. The winner will head into November as the clear favorite, a dynamic highlighted by The Texas Tribune.
Expect both campaigns to pour time and cash into turning out voters in northwest Harris County suburbs like Cypress, Klein, Tomball and Katy, where this contest is likely to be decided. As May 26 gets closer, look for a spike in ads, mailers and national political attention aimed squarely at TX-38’s Republican base.
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