Who is running for State Senator, District 21 in 2026?
Here are the candidates for State Senator, District 21 on the November 3, 2026 ballot. This race is on the ballot for voters in Texas Senate District 21.
Positions come only from each candidate's own votes, official actions, statements and questionnaire answers, never from party labels. Every item links to its source.
Side by side
Each candidate's position on the issues this office handles, from their own record. Details and sources are in each profile below.
| Issue | Judith ZaffiriniDemocrat | Julie DahlbergRepublican |
|---|---|---|
| Safety net programs | Expand help for childcare, housing and paid family leaveSaid · high | No public position |
| Abortion | No public position | Illegal, except to save the mother's life or in cases of rape or incestSaid · low |
| Guns | No public position | Remove most restrictions; bearing arms is a rightSaid · medium |
| AI data centers | No public position | Pause new approvals until the state finishes studying power and water impactsSaid · medium |
| School choice | No, keep public money in traditional public schoolsSaid · high | Yes, universal school choice for every familySaid · medium |
| Curriculum and books | Locally elected school boardsSaid · medium | No public position |
| Property taxes | Keep cutting them and cap how fast they can riseSaid · high | Eliminate school property taxes and replace them with sales tax or state moneySaid · medium |
| Election rules | No public position | Strict photo ID, paper ballots, cleaner voter rolls and fewer mail ballotsSaid · medium |
| Gender care for minors | No public position | No, ban these treatments for minorsSaid · medium |
| Redistricting | Independent commissions draw maps, with a national ban on partisan gerrymanderingOfficial action · medium | No public position |
| Term limits | No public position | Yes, strict limits, such as three House terms and two Senate termsSaid · medium |
| School vaccines | Keep requirements with simple personal-belief exemptionsVoted · medium | No public position |
| Nuclear power | Back new reactors with public funds, tax credits, and streamlined approvalsOfficial action · medium | No public position |
| China policy | Get tougher: broad tariffs, state bans on land purchases, and forced app salesVoted · medium | No public position |
Judith Zaffirini
Democrat · IncumbentTexas State Senator, District 21
Judith Zaffirini is a Democrat from Laredo who has served in the Texas Senate since 1987 and became the first woman Dean of the Senate on December 31, 202312. She is a former teacher and communications specialist12. She faces Republican Julie Dahlberg, who also ran against her in 20221314.
Where they stand 10 issues · tap any issue for the evidence
School choiceNo, keep public money in traditional public schoolshigh
Said · high confidence- In her 2026 ATPE survey she said she has a 100 percent voting record against school vouchers by any name. (2026) source
- Voted no on SB 2 (2025), creating an education savings account program; it passed the Senate 19 to 12. (2025-02-05) source
- Voted no on SB 8 (2023), an earlier education savings account bill; it passed the Senate 18 to 13. (2023-04-06) source
Safety net programsExpand help for childcare, housing and paid family leavehigh
Said · high confidence- Her campaign website says she supports expanding Medicaid. (2026) source
- Authored SB 45 (2025), relating to the expansion of eligibility for Medicaid to certain individuals under the federal Affordable Care Act. (2025) source
- Authored SJR 6 (2025), a proposed constitutional amendment requiring the state to expand Medicaid eligibility. (2025) source
Property taxesKeep cutting them and cap how fast they can risehigh
Said · high confidence- Her campaign website says she is positioned to advance policies to cut property taxes. (2026) source
- Is listed among the authors of SB 4 (2025), which raised the school homestead exemption. (2025) source
- Is listed among the authors of SJR 2 (2025), the constitutional amendment to raise the school homestead exemption. (2025) source
RedistrictingIndependent commissions draw maps, with a national ban on partisan gerrymanderingmedium
Official action · medium confidence- Authored SB 69 (2025), relating to the establishment of the Texas Redistricting Commission. (2025) source
- Authored SJR 8 (2025), a proposed constitutional amendment establishing the Texas Redistricting Commission to redistrict Congress and the Legislature. (2025) source
- Authored SB 69 (2023), the same proposal for a Texas Redistricting Commission, in the 88th Legislature. (2023) source
Nuclear powerBack new reactors with public funds, tax credits, and streamlined approvalsmedium
Official action · medium confidenceChina policyGet tougher: broad tariffs, state bans on land purchases, and forced app salesmedium
Voted · medium confidence- Voted yes on SB 17 (2025), restricting land purchases in Texas by certain foreign governments, companies and individuals, including from China; it passed the Senate 24 to 7. (2025-03-19) source
School vaccinesKeep requirements with simple personal-belief exemptionsmedium
Voted · medium confidence- Voted yes on HB 1586 (2025), requiring the state to post the school vaccine exemption affidavit form online; it passed the Senate 23 to 8. (2025-05-25) source
Curriculum and booksLocally elected school boardsmedium
Said · medium confidence- In her 2026 ATPE survey she said the state should set clear statewide standards, but that local school districts, educators and parents must keep meaningful authority over instructional materials, and that the state should set the floor, not the ceiling. (2026) source
- Voted yes on SB 13 (2025), creating local school library advisory councils and parental rights over library materials; it passed the Senate 23 to 8, and she and two other senators filed a reason for vote noting both its parental review rights and its book challenge process. (2025-03-19) source
- Voted no on HB 900 (2023), regulating library materials sold to or kept in public school libraries; it passed the Senate 19 to 12. (2023-05-23) source
Religion in schoolsNo single answer fitsmedium
Voted · medium confidence- Voted yes on SB 11 (2025), allowing school boards to set a period for prayer and reading of the Bible or other religious texts; it passed the Senate 23 to 7. (2025-03-18) source
- Voted no on the motion to concur in the House amendment to SB 10 (2025), requiring the Ten Commandments in public school classrooms; the Senate concurred 21 to 10. (2025-05-28) source
Texas power gridNo single answer fitslow
Official action · low confidence- Authored SB 31 (2023), relating to the interconnection of the ERCOT power grid to grids outside the ERCOT power region. (2023) source
- Voted yes on SB 2627 (2023), relating to funding mechanisms to support the construction, maintenance and modernization of dispatchable electric generating facilities; it passed the Senate 27 to 4. (2023-05-04) source
No public position found on: Minimum wage, Business regulation, Healthcare, Abortion, Guns, Immigration, Energy and climate, AI data centers, Housing and growth, Policing and crime, Election rules, Judges, Politicians trading stocks, Marijuana, Gender care for minors, Term limits, Campaign finance, Electoral College, Ranked-choice voting, Death penalty, Qualified immunity, Mandatory minimums, Drug prices, Childcare and pre-K, Paid leave, Student loans, AI regulation, Kids online, E-Verify mandate, Transgender athletes, DEI programs.
Julie Dahlberg
RepublicanSmall business owner and U.S. Army veteran
Julie Dahlberg is a U.S. Army veteran and former nonprofit executive who owns a glass company in La Vernia2. She served as a Republican precinct chair and delegate to the state convention2, and she ran unsuccessfully for this seat in 20224. She is the Republican nominee and faces incumbent Democrat Judith Zaffirini5.
Where they stand 8 issues · tap any issue for the evidence
Election rulesStrict photo ID, paper ballots, cleaner voter rolls and fewer mail ballotsmedium
Said · medium confidence- Her campaign priorities list proof of citizenship to register, quarterly voter roll verification, government-issued photo ID, hand-marked paper ballots and precinct-level counting. (2026) source
Term limitsYes, strict limits, such as three House terms and two Senate termsmedium
Said · medium confidence- Her campaign says to limit elected officials to no more than three terms and that she prefers two, and she pledges to serve at most two terms. (2026) source
Gender care for minorsNo, ban these treatments for minorsmedium
Said · medium confidence- Her campaign says it should be a criminal offense to perform or impart social, pharmaceutical, psychological or surgical actions to change a child's sex. (2026) source
Property taxesEliminate school property taxes and replace them with sales tax or state moneymedium
Said · medium confidenceSchool choiceYes, universal school choice for every familymedium
Said · medium confidenceAI data centersPause new approvals until the state finishes studying power and water impactsmedium
Said · medium confidence- In a September 2026 Community Impact Q&A she said to stop data center development unless or until water and energy capacity are restored and expanded. (2026-09-08) source
GunsRemove most restrictions; bearing arms is a rightmedium
Said · medium confidence- Her campaign says the Second Amendment says plainly that the right 'shall not be infringed' and calls to strengthen and preserve gun rights and oppose gun-grab laws. (2026) source
AbortionIllegal, except to save the mother's life or in cases of rape or incestlow
Said · low confidence- Her campaign says abortion is not health care, calls for equal protection under the law for the preborn from fertilization, and lists repealing the parts of the Penal Code and Civil Practice and Remedies Code that exempt women from fetal homicide prosecution. (2026) source
No public position found on: Safety net programs, Minimum wage, Business regulation, Healthcare, Immigration, Energy and climate, Texas power grid, Curriculum and books, Housing and growth, Policing and crime, Judges, Politicians trading stocks, Marijuana, Redistricting, Campaign finance, Electoral College, Ranked-choice voting, Death penalty, Qualified immunity, Mandatory minimums, Drug prices, Childcare and pre-K, Paid leave, Student loans, AI regulation, Kids online, School vaccines, Nuclear power, E-Verify mandate, Transgender athletes, DEI programs, Religion in schools, China policy.
Last reviewed 2026-10-06. Spotted something wrong? Every claim links to its source so you can check it yourself.