Heated primary goes to the polls in Congressional District 2

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Texas (KTRK) -- Every Texas seat in Congress is on the ballot when early voting begins Tuesday.

Some incumbents have easy paths to the nomination. Others face challenges from within their own party.

Among them is Dan Crenshaw, a Republican representing the 2nd Congressional District. Crenshaw is facing challenges from three other republicans. One of them is State Representative Steve Toth, who used to support Crenshaw.

Crenshaw has represented Texas's 2nd Congressional District since he was elected in 2018. He's now seeking a fifth term in office.

"This re-election's about getting things done," Crenshaw told ABC13. "It's about results, it's not about trendy narratives online that aren't even true."

The district, in its new configuration, stretches across Montgomery County and parts of north and east Harris County, including The Woodlands and Kingwood. Legislators drew it to protect a Republican seat in Congress.

"Voters should look to a candidate and say, 'Well, what do you want to do exactly?'" Crenshaw said. "Like, what policies do you care about? And I've always been a policy guy, you know, it's not always the flashy stuff that gets a lot of clicks, but that's the hard work that actually matters in people's lives. "

Crenshaw says he has delivered on many of his promises when he first went to Washington, D.C. as a conservative. A retired Navy SEAL, he said his top priorities include flood mitigation, energy, and the border, namely, going after the drug cartels.

"We need a strategic plan to go after the cartels," he said. "I'm the only one in Congress who's even bothered to do the research and ask the questions and take the trips down to Mexico and figure out what that plan looks like so that we can support the administration's efforts."

Toth is running against Crenshaw. A former pastor, a small business owner, and state representative, Toth says flood prevention is a top concern for people in the district, and he thinks his message is getting through to voters.

"I can't ever think of a race that I've been in where I have spent anywhere near what my opponent has spent," Toth said. "And the reality is that when you're running against a record like his, you don't have to spend as much money, you just have to educate people on who he is. "

Toth said he used to support Crenshaw. That changed for Toth with Crenshaw's support of the bipartisan Senate border bill in early 2024.

"I've had enough at that point," Toth said. "I mean, there's only so much that we can do as a state when we're working against the federal government, and when we send people to Washington, D.C, from Texas. They should be advocating for Texas, and he was not."

Border security and flood mitigation are among his top priorities. His social media feed often mentions efforts to help Kingwood in particular.

"I think that's really critically important, and it's not just Kingwood," Toth said. "North Harris County saw a tremendous amount of flooding as well."

Issues aside, it is a race where both candidates have little nice to say about one another.

"So, look, this really is about actual results," Crenshaw said, "and actual adherence to the conservative philosophical grounding and policies that work for you."

Two other Republicans are running in the primary: Martin Etwop, who has raised a little more than $7,000 according to FEC filings, and Nicholas Plumb, who has raised less than $800.00.

The winner will face Democrat Shaun Finnie, who is running unopposed in his primary.

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