Texas' 1st congressional district in the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

serves the northeastern portion of the state of

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

. As of 2022, the 1st district contained 775,992 people. It consists largely of four small

East Texas East Texas is a broadly defined cultural, geographic, and ecological region in the eastern part of the U.S. state of Texas that consists of approximately 38 counties. It is roughly divided into Northeast Texas, Northeast, Southeast Texas, Sout ...

metropolitan area A metropolitan area or metro is a region consisting of a densely populated urban area, urban agglomeration and its surrounding territories which share Industry (economics), industries, commercial areas, Transport infrastructure, transport network ...

s—

Kilgore Kilgore may refer to: Places * Kilgore, Texas, the largest US city named Kilgore * Kilgore, Idaho * Kilgore, Nebraska * Kilgore, Ohio * Kilgore College Fictional characters * Kilgore Trout, a recurring character in the novels of Kurt Vonnegut ...

Texarkana, Texas Texarkana is a city in Bowie County, Texas, United States, in the Ark-La-Tex region. Located approximately from Dallas, Texarkana is a twin cities, twin city with neighboring Texarkana, Arkansas. The Texas city's population was 36,193 at the 2 ...

, Longview–

Marshall Marshall may refer to: Places Australia *Marshall, Victoria, a suburb of Geelong, Victoria ** Marshall railway station Canada * Marshall, Saskatchewan * The Marshall, a mountain in British Columbia Liberia * Marshall, Liberia Marshall Is ...

, and Tyler. With a

Cook Partisan Voting Index The Cook Partisan Voting Index, abbreviated PVI or CPVI, is a measurement of how partisan a U.S. congressional district or U.S. state is. This partisanship is indicated as lean towards either the Republican Party or the Democratic Party, com ...

rating of R+25, it is one of the most Republican districts in Texas. It has been represented by Republican

Nathaniel Moran Nathaniel Quentin Moran (born September 23, 1974) is an American politician and attorney who has served as the U.S. representative for Texas's 1st congressional district since 2023. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a mem ...

since 2023. The 1st district once encompassed large parts of

North Texas North Texas is a term used primarily by residents of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex to refer to a geographic area of Texas, generally considered to include the area south of Oklahoma, east of Abilene, Texas, Abilene, west of Paris, Texas, Par ...

and Central Texas, but as the population of Texas grew, the district got smaller until it only encompassed about half of

Northeast Texas Northeast Texas is a cultural and geographic region in the northeast corner of the U.S. state of Texas. Geographically centered on two metropolitan areas strung along Interstate 20— Tyler in the west and Kilgore, Longview, Marshall to the eas ...

. For most of its history, the district was based in

Texarkana The Texarkana metropolitan statistical area (MSA), as defined by the United States Office of Management and Budget, is a two-county region anchored by the Twin cities (geographical proximity), twin cities of Texarkana, Texas (population 37,33 ...

, but in a controversial 2003 redistricting orchestrated by then-

House Majority Leader Party leaders of the United States House of Representatives, also known as floor leaders, are congresspeople who coordinate legislative initiatives and serve as the chief spokespersons for their parties on the House floor. These leaders are el ...

Tom DeLay Thomas Dale DeLay (; born April 8, 1947) is an American author and retired politician who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives. A Republican Party (United States), Republican, DeLay represented Texas's 22nd congress ...

, Texarkana was drawn out of the district and moved to the neighboring . Lufkin, Tyler and Longview were added in its place. In the 2021 redistricting, Lufkin was dropped from the district and Texarkana was added back into it. The district was predominantly rural for much of its history, and thus was far friendlier to electing Democrats to Congress even as most of Texas swung toward the

Republicans Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

. The district's four-term Democratic incumbent,

Max Sandlin Max Allen Sandlin Jr. (born September 29, 1952) is an American politician who served eight years in the U.S. House of Representatives representing Texas's 1st congressional district from 1997 to 2005. Early life and career The son of the former ...

, was a particularly severe critic of the DeLay-led redistricting effort, claiming that lumping rural areas with urban ones stifled the voice of rural voters. The 2003 redistricting made the district more urban and Republican, especially with the addition of the Republican strongholds of Tyler and Longview. Sandlin was easily defeated in November 2004 by Republican

Louie Gohmert Louis Buller Gohmert Jr. (; born August 18, 1953) is an American attorney, politician, and former judge who was the U.S. representative from Texas's 1st congressional district from 2005 to 2023. Gohmert is a Republican and was part of the Tea ...

, a longtime judge in the Tyler area. Gohmert was the first Republican to represent the district since

Reconstruction Reconstruction may refer to: Politics, history, and sociology *Reconstruction (law), the transfer of a company's (or several companies') business to a new company *''Perestroika'' (Russian for "reconstruction"), a late 20th century Soviet Union ...

. Proving just how Republican the reconfigured district is, Gohmert was reelected seven times with no less than 68 percent of the vote. The Democrats chose to not put up a candidate in 2008 and 2012. In 2022, Moran was elected to succeed Gohmert, with nearly 80% of the vote, becoming only the second Republican to represent the district since Reconstruction. In 2024, Moran ran unopposed. The district's best-known congressman,

Wright Patman John William Wright Patman (August 6, 1893 – March 7, 1976) was an American politician. First elected in 1928, Patman served 24 consecutive terms in the United States House of Representatives for Texas's 1st congressional district from 1929 to ...

, represented the district for 47 years—the second-longest tenure of any Texan in Congress. He was an early supporter of the

New Deal The New Deal was a series of wide-reaching economic, social, and political reforms enacted by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in the United States between 1933 and 1938, in response to the Great Depression in the United States, Great Depressi ...

, and later chaired the House Banking Committee for 12 years.

2012 redistricting

The 2012 redistricting process changed the district's northern section. All of Marion County, Cass County, and most of Upshur County were removed from the district. To compensate, the eastern half of Wood County was added. Prior to this, the district included a population of 651,619 in the 2000 census. Additionally, the population broke down accordingly: * Under 18: 26.2% * Over 65: 14.1% * Married 58.7% * Non-Hispanic White: 71% * Black: 18% * Hispanic: 9% * Asian: 1% * Foreign born: 5.3% * Language other than English: 9.8% * Median household income: $33,461 * Owner-occupied housing: 71.9% * Income above $200K: 1.4%

Recent election results from statewide races

Composition

For the 118th and successive Congresses (based on redistricting following the 2020 census), the district contains all or portions of the following counties and communities: Bowie County (8) : De Kalb, Maud, Nash, New Boston, Red Lick,

Redwater Redwater or red water may refer to: Geographical locations *Redwater, Mississippi *Redwater, Texas *Redwater River, a stream in Montana *Athabasca-Redwater provincial electoral district in Alberta, Canada *Redwater, Alberta, a town in Alberta, Cana ...

, Wake Village Camp County (2) :

Pittsburg Pittsburg may refer to: Places United States Cities, towns, townships and counties *Pittsburg, California * Pittsburg, Florida *Pittsburg, Kansas, Crawford County *Pittsburg, New Hampshire * Pittsburg, Oklahoma *Pittsburg, Texas *Pittsburg Coun ...

, Rocky Mound Cass County (11) : All 11 communities Franklin County (2) :

Mount Vernon Mount Vernon is the former residence and plantation of George Washington, a Founding Father, commander of the Continental Army in the Revolutionary War, and the first president of the United States, and his wife, Martha. An American landmar ...

, Winnsboro Gregg County (11) : All 11 communities Harrison County (6) : All 6 communities Marion County (2) : Jefferson, Pine Harbor Morris County (5) : All 5 communities Panola County (4) : All 4 communities Red River County (6) : All 6 communities Rusk County (9) : All 9 communities Sabine County (3) : All 3 communities San Augustine County (2) : Broaddus, San Augustine Shelby County (6) : All 6 communities Smith County (12) : All 12 communities Titus County (4) : All 4 communities Upshur County (6) :

Big Sandy Big Sandy may refer to: Communities *Big Sandy, Montana, a town in Chouteau County * Big Sandy, Nebraska, in Thayer County, Nebraska * Big Sandy, Tennessee, a town in Benton County * Big Sandy, Texas, a town in Upshur County * Big Sandy, West Virg ...

, East Mountain, Gilmer, Gladewater (shared with Gregg County), Union Grove, Warren City (shared with Gregg County)

Recent election results

Election results from recent races:

U.S. Representative

List of members representing the district

References

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Congressional Biographical Directory of the United States 1774–present
{{DEFAULTSORT:Texas's 1st Congressional District 01 1845 establishments in the United States 1845 establishments in the Republic of Texas Constituencies established in 1845