Who is running for District Judge, 236th Judicial District in 2026?

Judge, 236th District Court (Tarrant County), appointed

H. Dustin "Dusty" Fillmore III is the judge of the 236th District Court in Tarrant County, appointed by Governor Greg Abbott in January 2026¹. He was previously a partner at The Fillmore Law Firm, L.L.P.¹. He is the Republican nominee in the November 2026 race against Democrat Katherine "Kate" Kim²³.

• Judge, 236th District Court (Tarrant County), a civil district court, since his January 2026 appointment¹⁴
• Attorney and partner, The Fillmore Law Firm, L.L.P. (Fort Worth)¹
• Member of the State Bar of Texas, the Federalist Society, the Federal Bar Association and the Tarrant County Bar Association¹
• BA in English, Baylor University; JD, St. Mary's University School of Law¹
• Appointed by Governor Greg Abbott on January 15, 2026, for a term set to expire December 31, 2026¹. He is on the November 3, 2026 ballot as the Republican nominee²³.
• 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 Dusty Fillmore: Strongly Recommend 36.9% (106), Recommend 17.1% (49), Neutral 8.7% (25), Not Recommend 1.7% (5), Strongly Not Recommend 2.8% (8), Skipped 32.8% (94) (percent of the voters who chose that race category, with vote counts). The poll was taken before the March 3 primary⁵⁶.

Self-employed attorney

Katherine "Kate" Kim is a self-employed attorney and the Democratic nominee for judge of the 236th District Court in Tarrant County, a civil district court¹². The seat is held by Judge Dusty Fillmore, appointed by the Governor in January 2026³⁷.

• Self-employed attorney¹
• Not a sitting judge. She is the Democratic nominee on the November 3, 2026 ballot for the 236th Judicial District, challenging Dusty Fillmore, who was appointed by the Governor in January 2026¹²⁷.
• 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 Katherine "Kate" Kim: Strongly Recommend 3.8% (11), Recommend 2.8% (8), Neutral 14.6% (42), Not Recommend 6.6% (19), Strongly Not Recommend 8.4% (24), Skipped 63.8% (183) (percent of the voters who chose that race category, with vote counts). The poll was taken before the March 3 primary⁴⁵.