Chris Bell stands up for what’s right — no matter the odds. He has served as a:
Lifelong Democrat
Journalist
Attorney
City Council Member
U.S. Congressional Rep
He has earned a reputation for integrity, independence, and a relentless commitment to fairness for all Texans.
Chris is from all over Texas.
Born in Abilene and raised in Dallas — Chris attended The University of Texas at Austin, where he earned a journalism degree and led efforts to reinstate Student Government as president of the Interfraternity Council. After college, he became an award-winning broadcast journalist, covering local government and exposing corruption.
These experiences led him to decide to fight for change.
After earning his law degree from South Texas College of Law, the voters of Houston and Harris County elected Chris to the Houston City Council. He championed transparency, ethics, and accountability in city government.
His record of reform earned him the trust and support of the voters who would elect him to a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives, representing Houston’s 25th Congressional District.
In Congress, Chris founded the bipartisan Port Security Caucus to strengthen Texas’s vital ports and served as assistant whip under House Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer.
Then, a moment that showed his unflinching character.
In 2004, Chris filed a historic ethics complaint against then-House Majority Leader Tom DeLay. With this act, Chris exposed corruption and broke free from a seven-year bipartisan silence on congressional ethics. The House Ethics Committee unanimously admonished DeLay — a landmark victory for honesty in government and a testament to Chris’s courage and integrity.
Though Chris would pay the price with mid-decade redistrcting, Texas Democrats nominated Chris as our party's candidate for Governor of Texas in 2006. Chris earned over 1.3 million votes in a four-way race. Today, he continues to serve Texans as an attorney in Houston and Chappell Hill, and as a passionate advocate for clean government, fairness, and opportunity for all.
Now, Chris is running for Governor again — to bring integrity to state leadership, strengthen Texas schools, expand healthcare, and help write a new chapter in our history. A new way forward with a Texas that works for everyone — not just the well-connected few.
November 23, 2025
Chris Bell, Sid Miller, and the latest Texas politics
"It can't just be about them being wrong — it has to be about why you're right... Education has always been at the forefront for me... If the Republican Party succeeds in destroying public education here in the state of Texas, then in many ways they're going to succeed in destroying the state. And I think we saw the first step in that process with private school vouchers... Some of the proponents of that really would like to see Texas become a theocracy — and that scares the hell out of me."
— Texas: The Issue Is | FOX26 Houston
November 18, 2025
Former U.S. Representative Chris Bell on running for Texas governor
"And we can't keep doing infrastructure by tragedy. [We] can't wait for something horrific to happen before we say, 'Gosh we should have put in that alarm system in Kerr County. We should have done something about drainage over in Meyerland.' These types of things we need to be spotting and addressing along the way."
— Hello Houston | Houston Public Media (NPR)
November 16, 2025
Texas gubernatorial candidates Andrew White, Chris Bell
"...timing is everything, and I really do believe this is going to be an extraordinary midterm for the Democratic Party. I think people are fed up here in Texas, just as they are in many other parts of the country, and they want to see change. And Greg Abbott certainly does not represent change — he represents more of the same."
— Texas This Week | KVUE-TV (ABC) Austin
November 14, 2025
Texas gubernatorial candidates Andrew White, Chris Bell discuss campaigns
"Bell became the newest candidate to join the race on Monday... 'I think [the governor's race] is where I could have the greatest impact. I think it's where a lot of my ideas will be most needed, and where people will really get excited [about the] things that I want to do with education and affordability and opportunity and corruption. Those types of really need attention here in the state of Texas.'"
— KVUE-TV (ABC) Austin
November 13, 2025
Fmr. Rep. Chris Bell (D-TX) On His Run for Governor of Texas
"I've taken on corruption at the highest levels, back when I was in Congress... it's that type of leadership that's going to be needed in Texas going forward... The main reason that [private school voucher program] was introduced is because billionaire donors — that's what they want, and some of them go even further, and would like to see a theocracy in Texas. And I will do whatever I can to protect public school kids and public school teachers... When I talk about corruption, you shouldn't be making decisions for the welfare of our kids based on what some multi-million dollar donors want... And what's going to be good for kids here in Texas is improving public schools..."
— The Julie Mason Show, SiriusXM
November 13, 2025
Chris Bell to run for Governor
"Bell joins Gina Hinojosa, Andrew White, Bobby Cole, and Benjamin Flores. Seems pretty likely at this point that this will go to a runoff. I’ll be very interested to see what the January finance reports look like."
— Off the Kuff
November 12, 2025
Former U.S. Rep. Chris Bell joins Texas Democrats seeking to unseat Gov. Greg Abbott
"'Nowhere is the corruption on more vivid display than the office of our governor, Greg Abbott,' said Bell, announcing his candidacy in front of the Texas Capitol. 'It’s about the pay-to-play culture that has engulfed almost every aspect of our state government.'"
— Denton Record-Chronicle
November 12, 2025
Former Congressman Chris Bell enters Texas governor’s race, pledging ethics reform
"Bell served one term in Congress before he fell prey to redistricting under then-U.S. House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, R-Sugar Land. As a freshman, Bell broke a seven-year truce among House members and filed an ethics complaint against DeLay that led to DeLay's downfall."
— Houston Public Media (NPR)
November 12, 2025
Former Congressman Chris Bell enters Texas governor’s race, pledging ethics reform
"Bell criticized Abbott’s push for a private school voucher program, accusing the governor of catering to "multi-billion-dollar contributors" rather than prioritizing students and teachers. Bell then called for higher teacher pay and a renewed commitment to public education... [Bell] compared Abbott to the "Cousin Eddie" character from National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, saying the governor 'just doesn’t know when to leave. He spends half his time thinking about being president and the other half sucking up to one.'"
— FOX 7 Austin
November 11, 2025
Former U.S. Rep. Chris Bell joins Texas Democrats seeking to unseat Gov. Greg Abbott
"Bell on Tuesday slammed the school voucher program Abbott championed... 'Greg Abbott has never and will never have the same commitment to teachers or to public school students that I will'..."
— The Texas Tribune
November 10, 2025
Another Democrat joins the race for Texas governor in 2026
"Former U.S. Rep. Chris Bell on Monday announced a campaign to challenge Republican incumbent Greg Abbott for governor. 'Given what we saw in the elections last Tuesday, people are ready for change.'"
— The Killeen Daily Herald
November 10, 2025
Another Democrat joins the race for Texas governor in 2026
"Bell, 65, is running in the March 3 Democratic primary in a field that includes state Rep. Gina Hinojosa of Austin, Houston businessman Andrew White and Quitman rancher Bobby Cole.... A former Houston council member, Bell served one term in Congress (2003-2005). He was caught up in the Republican-driven 2003 redistricting effort."
— The Dallas Morning News
November 10, 2025
Another candidate joins race for Texas governor
"Bell represented the state's 25th district in the Houston area in 2003... Bell also ran for governor in 2006 but lost to Rick Perry. In 2020 he ran in the Democratic primary to unseat US Senator John Cornyn."
— KVUE-TV (ABC) Austin
November 9, 2025
Greg Abbott kicks off reelection campaign with aggressive property tax relief plan
"Former U.S. Rep. Chris Bell, D-Houston, has called an Austin news conference for Monday, where he could announce a campaign for governor."
— MSN
August 1, 2025
Public hearing on congressional redistricting map
"This is so stupid. With all of the problems and all of the challenges that we face here in the state of Texas, here we are spending so much time and so much money on something that no one in the state of Texas asked for. I've lived through mid-decade redistricting... the media used to call those of us who were targeted and taken out: 'victims'... but I assure you we were not alone, because the real victims in that process were the people of Texas who got drawn into unintelligible districts because of the bizarre nature of the lines, and lost a mountain of leadership in the [US] House of Representatives..."
— KHOU 11 Houston
I trust Texas women — and I believe government should not come between a woman and her doctor. For decades now, unqualified leaders in the highest positions in the state have spent far too much time thinking about the inner workings of women's bodies, and not nearly enough time thinking about women's individual rights.
I have consistently supported policies that protect reproductive rights while ensuring that mothers have access to the healthcare and support they need.
I voted against banning certain medical procedures that could endanger a mother’s life, because people and their doctors — not politicians — should make those decisions.