Alex Mealer Defeats State Rep. Cain in GOP Primary Runoff for New CD-9
5/26/26 – According to multiple news reports, Alexandra Mealer beat State Representative Briscoe Cain in a landslide tonight in the GOP primary runoff election for the newly redrawn Texas Congressional District 9. CD9 runs from the Ship Channel, Deer Park, Pasadena, and Baytown up the east side of Houston all the way to Liberty County. It even takes in the Lake Houston Dam.
From West Point to Afgan to Harvard to CD9
I first met Mealer in 2022 when she ran for Harris County Judge. However, she narrowly lost to Lina Hidalgo then. We reconnected in late 2025/early 2026 when she announced her candidacy for CD9.
I have nothing but admiration for Mealer. I endorsed her in both races. For those who have not met her in person, she is a force of nature, gifted with a keen intellect and seemingly inexhaustible supplies of energy.
Mealer graduated from West Point, then completed advanced training at the Naval Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) school. As a young lieutenant, the Army selected her ahead of her peers to form a new EOD company for a planned surge in Afghanistan. She prepared her team in half the time usually required by the Army then deployed to a forward operating base in Afghanistan.
While there, Mealer was again selected ahead of her peers to lead the EOD Headquarters Company, consisting of 600+ personnel deployed to 40+ locations throughout Afghanistan. For her 14-month deployment, Mealer was awarded the Combat Action Badge and Bronze Star Medal.
After honorably completing military service, Mealer obtained an MBA from Harvard Business School and a JD degree from Harvard Law School. She then went on to leverage her degrees as an oil & gas investment banker in Houston. She specialized in capital markets and merger/acquisition consulting in the oilfield services sector.
Mealer is also a wife, mother and business owner when she isn’t running for Congress.
Mealer Always Looking Forward
Within one day of her 2022 loss in the county judge race, Mealer began crafting legislation that would have expanded the geographic scope of the Harris County Flood Control District. Here is a white paper that Mealer wrote on the subject.
Even though Kingwood is not technically part of CD9, she is extremely familiar with flooding issues here and throughout the region.
According to unofficial election results reported in The Texan, New York Times, and Fox News, Mealer held 69 percent of the voting returns reported early Tuesday evening. So, congratulations, Alex Mealer!
Is her win a big deal? Absolutely. It’s crucial for the success of the region. If CD9 were a country, it would have approximately the 20th largest economy in the world, according to Mealer.
Mealer will face Democrat Leticia Gutierrez in the November election. But the new CD9 reportedly leans heavily to the R side now. So Mealer is expected to have a strong advantage in November.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 5/26/26
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