Who is running for Criminal District Judge #1 Tarrant County in 2026?

Associate Judge, 323rd District Court (Tarrant County)

Sherri Wagner is an associate judge of the 323rd District Court in Tarrant County, which hears juvenile cases, and a former criminal prosecutor¹². She is the Republican nominee for judge of Criminal District Court No. 1, a felony court, against Democrat Cindy Stormer¹³. The court is currently presided over by Judge Elizabeth H. Beach⁴.

• Associate Judge, 323rd District Court (Tarrant County), listed by the county under District Judge Alex Kim²; her campaign site says she took the bench in 2023 (the candidate's own account)⁵
• Former criminal prosecutor¹; her campaign site says she was a prosecutor for over 20 years, including in the Family Violence Unit, and tried over 120 jury trials (the candidate's own account)⁵
• Her campaign site lists a BA from Wayland Baptist University and a law degree from what is now Texas A&M School of Law (the candidate's own account)⁵
• Not a sitting district judge. She is an associate judge of the 323rd District Court, an appointed position under that court's district judge². She is the Republican nominee on the November 3, 2026 ballot for Criminal District Court No. 1³.
• Bar poll: Tarrant County Bar Association 2026 Judicial Candidate Poll (Jan 6 to Jan 29, 2026; 441 of 2,026 eligible attorney members voted, 21.8%). This is a non-binding poll of lawyers, not an endorsement by the Association. Results for Sherri Wagner: Strongly Recommend 21.0% (39), Recommend 9.1% (17), Neutral 9.7% (18), Not Recommend 7.5% (14), Strongly Not Recommend 11.8% (22), Skipped 40.9% (76) (percent of the voters who chose that race category, with vote counts). The poll was taken before the March 3 primary⁶⁷.

Attorney (campaign site says associated with The Coffey Firm)

Cindy Stormer is a former assistant district attorney in Dallas County and was elected district attorney of the 235th Judicial District in Cooke County¹². She is the Democratic nominee for judge of Criminal District Court No. 1, a felony court in Tarrant County, against Republican Sherri Wagner¹³. The court is currently presided over by Judge Elizabeth H. Beach⁴.

• Former assistant district attorney, Dallas County, 2008 to 2015, including Chief of the Mental Health Division and attorney in the Conviction Integrity Unit (per her campaign site, the candidate's own account)²
• Former elected District Attorney, 235th Judicial District, Cooke County, January 2005 through October 2008 (per her campaign site, the candidate's own account; the Fort Worth Report also reports she was elected district attorney there)¹²
• Private practice in Gainesville, Texas, 1990 to 2004, including criminal defense and work as a special prosecutor; former police officer and retired professor (the candidate's own account)²
• Not a sitting judge. She is the Democratic nominee on the November 3, 2026 ballot for Criminal District Court No. 1¹³.
• Bar poll: Tarrant County Bar Association 2026 Judicial Candidate Poll (Jan 6 to Jan 29, 2026; 441 of 2,026 eligible attorney members voted, 21.8%). This is a non-binding poll of lawyers, not an endorsement by the Association. Results for Cindy Stormer: Strongly Recommend 11.8% (22), Recommend 4.8% (9), Neutral 9.7% (18), Not Recommend 9.7% (18), Strongly Not Recommend 15.1% (28), Skipped 48.9% (91) (percent of the voters who chose that race category, with vote counts). The poll was taken before the March 3 primary⁵⁶.