Freshman Representative Christian Menefee defeated veteran Representative Al Green in Tuesday's Democratic primary runoff for Texas's newly redrawn 18th Congressional District, ending Green's 22-year career in Washington.
According to NBC News and network projections, the Associated Press called the race after Menefee secured 68.9 percent of the vote to Green's 31.1 percent. The incumbent-on-incumbent runoff was triggered by a mid-decade, Republican-led redistricting map that merged portions of both lawmakers' Houston-area bases.
Menefee, 38, who recently entered Congress via a special election, ran on a platform that embraced emerging sectors, including cryptocurrency. Green, 78, a progressive known for leading early impeachment efforts against Donald Trump, maintained a skeptical view of digital assets. Backed by pro-crypto political action committees, Menefee is now favored to retain the solidly Democratic seat in November.
