Hays County
Vote for oneResearched · fact-checked
Paul StillRepublican
Cassie Benoist-TempletonDemocraticOn ballot as
Paul Still
Cassie Benoist-Templeton
Current role
Not found
Prosecutor, Caldwell County District Attorney's office (per campaign)
Background
- Former law clerk, Texas Court of Criminal Appeals; start of legal career (per campaign)
- Former Assistant District Attorney, Harris County (per campaign)
- Criminal justice degree, Texas State University (per campaign)
- Law degree, Oklahoma City University (per campaign)
- Born in Galveston County
- Hays County permanent resident since 2012 (per campaign)
Experience
- Selected to provide legal counsel to judges on the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals (per campaign)
- Former Houston trial prosecutor who moved to the Court of Criminal Appeals in Austin, advising on felony matters (per Hays Free Press)
- Prosecutor of serious crimes against women and children, Caldwell County DA's office, past twelve years (per campaign)
- Hays-Caldwell Women's Center recognition, 2024 (per campaign)
- Roxanne's House honor, April 2025 (per campaign)
- Democratic primary (March 3, 2026): won, 66.54% over incumbent Judge Joe Pool and Bill Henry (unofficial)
Top priorities
- Campaign site: "accountability on the bench means applying the law as written, without politics, pressure, or personal agendas influencing decisions"
- "Justice requires neutrality and judicial restraint"
- Says he will foster a courtroom "that reflects patience, fairness, and respect for the rights of all parties"
- At a February 2026 forum: "I am not here procedurally to reinvent the wheel"
- Wants to help the civil case backlog with special dockets (per the Hays Free Press)
- "every person must be treated with fairness, dignity, and respect"
- Campaign site: "She is committed to ensuring the law is applied evenly and in accordance with customary practice"
- First-year goals: "expand the drug court program" and "address the civil backlog" (February 2026 forum)
- "You need a judge who's willing to come up with inventive ways to move cases"
Tidbits
- Judicial philosophy: Campaign site: "the role of a judge is not to seek attention or advance an agenda, but to apply the law fairly, thoughtfully, and consistently"
- Court administration: At a February 2026 bar association forum: "I am not here procedurally to reinvent the wheel or to sweep in some massive procedural changes that are going to change the way you do business"
- Judicial philosophy: Campaign site: "every person must be treated with fairness, dignity, and respect"
- Court administration: At a February 2026 bar association forum, said her first-year goals are to "expand the drug court program" and "address the civil backlog"
Endorsements
None found in our research
None found in our research
Paul Still
Republican- On ballot as
- Paul Still
- Current role
- Not found
- Background
- Former law clerk, Texas Court of Criminal Appeals; start of legal career (per campaign)
- Former Assistant District Attorney, Harris County (per campaign)
- Experience
- Selected to provide legal counsel to judges on the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals (per campaign)
- Former Houston trial prosecutor who moved to the Court of Criminal Appeals in Austin, advising on felony matters (per Hays Free Press)
- Top priorities
- Campaign site: "accountability on the bench means applying the law as written, without politics, pressure, or personal agendas influencing decisions"
- "Justice requires neutrality and judicial restraint"
- Says he will foster a courtroom "that reflects patience, fairness, and respect for the rights of all parties"
- At a February 2026 forum: "I am not here procedurally to reinvent the wheel"
- Wants to help the civil case backlog with special dockets (per the Hays Free Press)
- Tidbits
- Judicial philosophy: Campaign site: "the role of a judge is not to seek attention or advance an agenda, but to apply the law fairly, thoughtfully, and consistently"
- Court administration: At a February 2026 bar association forum: "I am not here procedurally to reinvent the wheel or to sweep in some massive procedural changes that are going to change the way you do business"
- Endorsements
- None found in our research
- Campaign website
- stillforjudge.com
Cassie Benoist-Templeton
Democratic- On ballot as
- Cassie Benoist-Templeton
- Current role
- Prosecutor, Caldwell County District Attorney's office (per campaign)
- Background
- Criminal justice degree, Texas State University (per campaign)
- Law degree, Oklahoma City University (per campaign)
- Born in Galveston County
- Hays County permanent resident since 2012 (per campaign)
- Experience
- Prosecutor of serious crimes against women and children, Caldwell County DA's office, past twelve years (per campaign)
- Hays-Caldwell Women's Center recognition, 2024 (per campaign)
- Roxanne's House honor, April 2025 (per campaign)
- Democratic primary (March 3, 2026): won, 66.54% over incumbent Judge Joe Pool and Bill Henry (unofficial)
- Top priorities
- "every person must be treated with fairness, dignity, and respect"
- Campaign site: "She is committed to ensuring the law is applied evenly and in accordance with customary practice"
- First-year goals: "expand the drug court program" and "address the civil backlog" (February 2026 forum)
- "You need a judge who's willing to come up with inventive ways to move cases"
- Tidbits
- Judicial philosophy: Campaign site: "every person must be treated with fairness, dignity, and respect"
- Court administration: At a February 2026 bar association forum, said her first-year goals are to "expand the drug court program" and "address the civil backlog"
- Endorsements
- None found in our research
- Campaign website
- cassieforjudge.com
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