The 1962 Texas Senate elections took place as part of the biennial United States elections. Texas voters elected state senators in all 31 State Senate districts. The winners of this election served in the 58th Texas Legislature, serving staggered terms, with half of them up for election in 1964 and the other half up in 1966. Term length was determined by the drawing of lots at the opening of the following legislature.

Background

Democrats had controlled the Texas Senate since the 1872 elections. Since the implementation of Jim Crow voting restrictions in the early 1900s, Democrats had held unanimous or nearly unanimous control of the entire state legislature. These legislators were almost exclusively White men, with White women and Hispanic men winning office from time to time.[1] No African American had won any election to the legislature in the entire 20th century up to this point.[2]

Redistricting

The Texas Legislature, made up exclusively by Democrats, controlled the state's decennial redistricting following the 1960 census. While debating the chamber's redistricting bill, Senator Jep Fuller of Jefferson County filibustered the maps, objecting to the disproportionate distribution of voters among the districts. His own district in 1961 had double the population of the least populous district, and Senator Robert Baker, who supported him, represented Harris County with nine times the population of the least populous district. Fuller's filibuster failed, and attempts to get the Texas Supreme Court to overturn the maps also failed.[3][4] Districts at the time strictly followed the boundaries of the state's 254 counties with no splits, and the Texas Constitution limited counties to one senator each, even if their population warranted multiple senators.[5][6]

Campaign

Every seat in the Senate was won by the Democratic nominee. Republicans only put up fifteen nominees across all state senate posts, with the remaining races being decided at the Democratic primary election.[7]

Results

William H. Gardner of The Houston Post reported of the incoming Senate roster that twelve of the 31 members were conservatives, eleven were liberals, and eight were moderates. Ten of the 31 senators were newcomers to the Senate, four of whom had no previous state legislative service.[8]

Members elected

Below are the members elected at the 1962 general election, along with the length of their terms as determined at the beginning of the 1963 legislative session.[9][10][11] Members in boldface were not members of the previous legislature.

References

  1. ↑ May, Janice C. "The Evolution of the Texas Legislature: A Historical Overview". Texas State Historical Association. Retrieved 18 September 2025.
  2. ↑ Bickerstaff, Steve (2020). Heath, C. Robert (ed.). Gerrymandering Texas. Lubbock: Texas Tech University Press. pp. 81–82. ISBN 978-1-68283-073-4.
  3. ↑ Brooks, Raymond (May 18, 1961). "Filibuster Ends: Fuller Again Redistricting Loser". The Austin Statesman. p. A3. ProQuest 1527763194. Retrieved May 2, 2023.
  4. ↑ "Equitable Redistrict Try Failure". The Austin Statesman. November 8, 1961. p. A5. ProQuest 1527812988. Archived from the original on May 3, 2023. Retrieved May 2, 2023.
  5. ↑ "Redistricting For Texas". The Houston Chronicle. 28 May 1961. Retrieved 12 June 2026.
  6. ↑ "Editorial: Redistricting Ups Harris County Though Proportions Not Perfect". The Houston Chronicle. 2 June 1961. Retrieved 13 June 2026.
  7. ↑ "Three-Way Split Likely in Texas Senate; House May Swing Right". The Houston Chronicle. 28 October 1962. Retrieved 13 June 2026.
  8. ↑ Gardner, William H. (9 December 1962). "Texas Liberals Grow in Senate, Decline in House". The Houston Post. Retrieved 13 June 2026.
  9. ↑ "Senators Draw For Four-Year Terms At Austin". The Waxahachie Daily Light. 9 January 1963. Retrieved 13 June 2026.
  10. ↑ Jones, Garth (4 June 1962). "Saturday's Runoff Hard On State Representatives". Tyler Morning Telegraph. Associated Press. Retrieved 13 June 2026.
  11. ↑ "Legislature Lineup Listed". Beaumont Enterprise. Associated Press. Retrieved 13 June 2026.
source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1962_Texas_Senate_election