2026 forecast ยท Texas 36th

Brian Babin is very likely to win Texas's 36th District.

Rhonda Hart vs Brian Babin. The model has Babin ahead by 8.7 points, winning 90 percent of 2,000 simulated elections.

Likely RModel R +8.7Updated October 22, 2026
Rhonda Hart
Democrat
45.6%
122,693 projected votes
Brian Babin
Republican
54.4%
146,083 projected votes
90%Babin
10%Hart
Babin very likelyEach square is one simulated election night, Babin wins about 90 of 100
RatingLikely R90% chance for Babin
Model marginR +8.7No polls in the race
80 percent rangeD +0.1 to R +17.12,000 simulations
Projected votes268,776Babin 54.4%

The district map

Every district in the state, shaded by its rating

Texas districts

38 districts
Safe DLikely DLean DToss upLean RLikely RSafe R

Vote share

Each candidate's projected share and the range of 80 percent of simulations

Rhonda HartDemocrat ยท 10% to win
45.6%
Brian BabinRepublican ยท 90% to win
54.4%

Scale runs from 25 to 75 percent. The dot is the forecast, the band is the 80 percent range and the brighter tick marks 50 percent.

Projected district vote

268,776 votes
CandidateVotesShare
Brian Babin R146,08354.4%
Rhonda Hart D122,69345.6%
Total268,776100%

Each candidate's expected vote in the On Point simulation, at the forecast's projected turnout.

The trend

Each side's chance of winning over the forecast's recent updates

0%25%50%75%100%10% Hart90% Babin16 updates agoToday

Polling

Every poll in the average, and how the model reads it

The Texas governor polling average
36%38%40%42%44%46%48%50%52%54%56%MayJunJulAugSepOct46.8Hinojosa49.9Abbott
The line is the On Point average: a robust LOWESS fit through the polls, weighted by recency, sample, voter screen and pollster grade, refit three times so outliers count for lessDot size is each poll's weight todayHover or use the arrow keys to read any day
What moves the average today
Fox News/Beacon Research and Shaw & CompanyOct 19 ยท 1,398 LV ยท A++16%Abbott +5.0
Fox News/Beacon Research and Shaw & CompanySep 28 ยท 881 LV ยท A++16%Abbott +5.0
CBS News/YouGovOct 16 ยท 1,460 LV ยท C9.8%Abbott +4.0
On Point PollingOct 18 ยท 385 LV ยท Gold9.6%Abbott +2.5
University of Houston Hobby SchoolOct 14 ยท 2,000 LV ยท NR9.4%Abbott +3.0
New York Times/SienaSep 30 ยท 600 LV ยท Gold8.6%Hinojosa +3.0
Every other poll together: 31%

This is the same On Point polling average as the full average page. The forecast reads the polls through its own Election Day projection, shown as the On Point average in the table below, and blends it with partisan lean and fundamentals.

Polls of the race

Full average
PollsterSampleAgeMargin
On Point averageWeighted averageNo polls

Each margin is the poll as the pollster published it. The forecast counts every poll after its house effect and the undecided split, which is what the trail above shows; hover a margin for the counted value. Lean R and Lean D mark partisan leaning firms.

Model margin
Babin +8.7
Chance of winning
Rhonda Hart10%
Brian Babin90%
Simulated vote
Rhonda Hart45.6%
Brian Babin54.4%
How the model gets there
Partisan leanD +24.0
FundamentalsR +8.6
With pollsR +8.8
Early vote turnoutD +0.1
With early voteR +8.7

Read from 0 ballots cast so far in Texas, against the party mix the forecast expected of them, with similar states and primary turnout. Early vote tracker

How we got here

From the state's partisan lean to the forecast, one stage at a time

D +29R +29Partisan leanthe state's baselineD +24.0Fundamentalsapproval, economy, candidatesR +8.6With pollsno pollsR +8.8With early voteturnout so farR +8.7
Methodology
Every county is rebuilt by simulating voters going to the polls, 2,000 times, from On Point Polling survey data, past results, and the polling average. How the model works.