Who is running for County Judge in 2026?

County Judge: 2026 Candidates & Ballot

2 candidates are tracked for County Judge on the November 3, 2026 ballot: Mark Keough and James Graf. Candidate information follows official Montgomery County election filings; verify with the official election office linked below.

March 3 primary result: Mark Keough won the Republican nomination outright with 51.00% over Wayne Mack, per the county's official canvass, and meets unopposed Democratic nominee James Graf on the November 3 ballot.

Mark Keough

Republican · Incumbent

Mark Keough is the incumbent Montgomery County Judge, first elected in 2019 after 26 years in the automotive industry, including as general sales manager of Northside Lexus, per his campaign site. He previously served in the Texas House of Representatives and is senior pastor of The Woodlands Bible Church, per his campaign site.

2026 priorities

Fund road, bridge and traffic-signal projects identified in the county's 2025 Mobility Study while managing growth on a pay-as-you-go basis, per the campaign site
Hold the line on the county tax rate and maintain its AAA credit rating, per the campaign site
Fund a deputy pay-parity plan and disaster-response resources for the sheriff's office, per the campaign site

Source: candidate campaign site, roster verified 2026-09-04.

Campaign site →

James Graf

Democratic

James Graf is the interim chief financial officer at NK Gen Biotech and the Democratic nominee for Montgomery County Judge, per Houston Public Media. No campaign website or questionnaire response was found as of September 3, 2026; the official election filing is the only verifiable source for James Graf.