Christian Menefee

Christian Dashaun Menefee (/ˈmɛnəfi/; born April 18, 1988) is an American politician and attorney serving as the U.S. representative for Texas's 18th congressional district since February 2026. A member of the Democratic Party, Menefee previously served as County Attorney for Harris County, Texas, from 2021 to 2026. He was the youngest person and the first African-American to hold the office.

Early career

Menefee was born in Houston, Texas and was the first from his family to attend college. Menefee is a graduate of Alief Hastings High School, University of Texas at San Antonio, and Washington University School of Law. Prior to taking office, Menefee practiced law at Norton Rose Fulbright and Kirkland & Ellis LLP. He said that the 2016 United States presidential election made him want to enter politics, and that the office of County Attorney is "the perfect intersection of law and policy making."

Harris County Attorney

Menefee defeated three-term incumbent Harris County Attorney Vince Ryan and another challenger in the March 2020 Texas Democratic Primary Election, and won the November 2020 General Election. He took office in January 2021. He was the youngest, and first African American to serve as Harris County Attorney.

Menefee has filed several lawsuits and taken other legal action against Texas Governor Greg Abbott and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. He sued Texas officials over the voting restrictions law passed by the legislature in 2021, and challenged state officials' demands to audit the 2020 and 2022 elections in Harris County. After state officials auditing the 2020 election announced they would send a contingent of inspectors to observe Harris County's 2022 general election and perform random checks of election records, Menefee joined Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner and Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo in calling on the United States Department of Justice to send federal monitors to the county. In 2021, after Harris County imposed a mask mandate for government buildings in the county, Menefee filed a lawsuit on behalf of Harris County against Texas Governor Greg Abbott over his ban on mask and vaccine mandates. This led to appearances on national news networks such as MSNBC to explain his opposition to Abbott's policies. The trial and appellate courts sided with Menefee in allowing Harris County's mask mandate to stand.

In March 2022, when Greg Abbott issued a directive to Texas's child protective services agency (DFPS) to open investigations into child abuse by parents who provide gender-affirming care to their transgender children, Menefee publicly refused to prosecute civil cases against those parents, publishing an open letter in The Daily Beast.

Prior to the vote certification deadline for the November 2022 General Election, Menefee represented Harris County in a suit brought by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton to void more than 2,000 votes cast pursuant to a court order extending polling hours by one hour in Harris County on Election Day. The Texas Supreme Court sided with Harris County, ruling that it could count the ballots cast during the additional hour of voting.

Menefee has used the Harris County Attorney's Office to file a number of high-profile environmental lawsuits, including against Union Pacific in connection with creosote-related contamination in Houston's Fifth Ward. He has filed complaints with the EPA to investigate how the TCEQ grants permits to concrete batch plants.

In January 2023, Menefee was appointed by United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Michael S. Regan to serve on the EPA's Local Government Advisory Committee.

On March 18, 2025, he announced his resignation to run in the special election for the U.S. House of Representatives after the death of Representative Sylvester Turner. He remained in office as county attorney until a successor appointed by the Harris County Commissioners Court could take office. On January 8, 2026, the Harris County Commissioners Court unanimously voted to appoint Jonathan Fombonne as the next Harris County Attorney. Fombonne was formally sworn in on January 14, 2026.

U.S. House of Representatives

Election

2025–26 special election

On March 18, 2025, Menefee announced his intention to run in the special election in Texas's 18th congressional district, which was vacant following the death of Sylvester Turner. He remained in office as Harris County attorney until his successor, Jonathan Fombonne, took office on January 14. Menefee defeated fellow Democrat Amanda Edwards in a runoff on January 31, 2026, by approximately 37 percentage points. Menefee was the first member of Congress elected after signing the Political Integrity Pledge banning congressional stock trading and rejecting corporate PAC money.

Tenure

Menefee was sworn in on February 2, 2026.

2026 election

Because of 2025 redistricting, Menefee had to run in a three-way Democratic primary for the 2026 general election just one month after being sworn in. His opponents were Al Green, an eleven-term U.S. Representative who had been drawn out of his own district and into Menefee's, and Amanda Edwards, a former member of Houston City Council. No candidate received 50% of the vote, so a runoff between Green and Menefee was held on May 26, 2026. Menefee defeated Green in the runoff by 39 percentage points.

Committee assignments

• Committee on Science, Space, and Technology

Electoral history

2020

2024

2025

2026

External links

• official U.S. House website
• campaign website
• at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• at the Federal Election Commission
• at the Library of Congress
• at Vote Smart
• onC-SPAN