Texas › Lavaca County › Texas Senate District 18
2 candidates are tracked for Texas Senate District 18, headed to a November 3, 2026 runoff: Lois W. Kolkhorst and Erica Gillum. Candidate information follows official Lavaca County election filings; verify with the official election office linked below.
Lois W. Kolkhorst (Republican), Erica Gillum (Democratic) are on the November 3 ballot for Texas Senate District 18; Lois W. Kolkhorst is the sitting member, per the Texas Senate' official roster. Nominees were chosen at the March 3 primary (or a May 26 runoff) or advanced unopposed; the field is the Texas Secretary of State's certified 2026 General Election candidate list. This seat is elected by district; only the district covering your address appears on your ballot.
Lois W. Kolkhorst is the Republican candidate for Texas Senate District 18 on the November 3, 2026 ballot, per the Texas Secretary of State's certified 2026 General Election candidate list. Lois W. Kolkhorst is a sitting member for the district, per the Texas Senate' official roster. Business owner who holds a BS from Texas Christian University, served in the Texas House from 2001 to 2014, and has served in the Senate since 2014, per Texas Senate official biography. Chairs the Senate Committee on Health and Human Services and the Sunset Advisory Commission, and represents nearly one million constituents across 18 counties, per Texas Senate official biography. No campaign website or questionnaire response was found as of September 11, 2026.
Erica Gillum is a Realtor and real estate investor who served on Hempstead City Council beginning in 2020 and was mayor of Hempstead from 2022 to 2024, according to her campaign site. She has more than two decades of experience in real estate, per the same source.
2026 priorities (per the campaign site)
- Fully funding neighborhood schools and paying teachers more
- Addressing rural water shortages and aging infrastructure
- Creating jobs and supporting small businesses
Source: candidate campaign site.
Campaign site →
