Age in the 2025 Texas General Assembly
Photo courtesy of the Texas Legislature Online.
The State of Texas held its elections for the Texas House of Representatives and Texas State Senate on November 5th, 2024. In January 2025, the 89th Texas Legislature officially convened to begin its first session. Among the members elected, seven legislators qualified as Young Elected Leaders, meaning they were aged 35 or younger on the day of the 2024 election. Below is a map illustrating the presence of these young representatives and senators within the Texas General Assembly.
Texas Demographic Background in the 2024 Election
Preliminary estimates from CIRCLE at Tufts University indicate that 42% of young people aged 18–29 voted in the 2024 election, with turnout surpassing 50% in key battleground states. Nearly 50 million young citizens were eligible to vote nationwide, including over 8 million who turned 18 since the 2022 midterms.
According to the Pew Research Center, Millennials surpassed Baby Boomers in 2020 to become the largest generation in the U.S., making up 31% of the population, followed closely by Boomers at 30.9%. Generation X accounts for 28%, while the Silent Generation makes up just 9.9%.
The Texas House of Representatives 2025 Legislative Session
Below is information covering age dynamics in the recently elected members of the Texas House of Representatives
- The average age among Texas House members was 54.32 years
- The youngest Representative, Caroline Fairly, was born in 1999
- The oldest Representative, Senfronia Calpernia Thompson, was born in 1939
- 6 Representatives are Young Elected Leaders age 35 or younger as of Election Day 2024
Generational Breakdown
Within the Texas House of Representatives, most representatives come from the Millennial, Generation X, or the Baby Boomer generations. Scroll below to view the generations represented in the Texas House of Representatives.
Partisanship in the Texas House of Representatives
The chart below provides a further breakdown of the current partisan composition of the 2025 Texas House of Representatives. Each dot represents a single member, colored by both party affiliation and whether the legislator qualifies as a Young Elected Leader (YEL)—defined as age 35 or younger at the time of the election. This format provides a visual snapshot of generational and partisan distribution within the chamber, highlighting how younger legislators are positioned across party lines.
Partisan differences in the Texas House extend beyond ideology to include notable generational contrasts. As shown in the visual below, Democratic members have an average age of 53.54, while Republicans have a higher average age of 54.86. These disparities may reflect broader patterns in political recruitment, generational turnover, and the types of candidates emerging in recent election cycles. 
Young Elected Representatives – Texas House of Representatives
Following the 2024 State Legislative Elections in Texas, six members aged 35 or under were elected to the Texas House of Representatives. Below are all six members, ordered from youngest to oldest, along with information about their local districts and party affiliations.
Young Elected Representatives — Texas House of Representatives (Age ≤ 35)
| Name | District | Birth Year (Age on Election Day 2024) | First Elected | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
Caroline Fairly (R) | District 87 —
Amarillo, TX |
1999 (Age 25) | 2024 |
 |
Denise Villalobos (R) | District 34 —
Corpus Christi, TX |
1993 (Age 31) | 2024 |
 |
Nathaniel Schatzline (R) | District 93 —
Fort Worth, TX |
1992 (Age 32) | 2022 |
 |
Aicha Davis (D) | District 109 —
Dallas, TX |
1989 (Age 35) | 2024 |
 |
Erin Elizabeth Gamez (D) | District 38 —
Brownsville, TX |
1989 (Age 35) | 2022 |
 |
James D. Talarico (D) | District 50 —
Austin, TX |
1989 (Age 35) | 2018 |
Photos Courtesy of the Texas House member roster
Gender in the Texas House of Representatives
The Texas House of Representatives reflects a range of age and gender dynamics that help shape the composition of the state’s legislative body. In Texas, men make up a larger share of the chamber than women. Across all members, 65.33% are men, while women make up 34.67%. For female representatives, the average age at the time of the election was 53.95; for men, it was 54.51. Of the 6 Young Elected Leaders, four are female, and two are male.
When examining both gender and party affiliation, additional age differences emerge within the Texas House of Representatives. Republican men have a higher average age when compared to Democratic men, while Democratic women have a higher average age when compared to Republican women. These patterns show that age representation in the Texas House of Representatives varies by both gender and partisan alignment, highlighting differing pathways to political office across demographic groups.
Race and Ethnicity in the Texas House of Representatives
The racial and ethnic composition of the Texas House of Representatives varies across generations. In 2024, younger cohorts exhibit greater diversity, although the chamber as a whole remains predominantly White. The table below shows the distribution of each generation.
Race and Ethnicity in the Texas House of Representatives
| Ethnicity | Millennial Generation 1981–1996 |
Generation X 1965–1980 |
Boomer Generation 1946–1964 |
Silent Generation 1928–1945 |
Full Chamber |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| White / Caucasian | 20 (60.61%) | 34 (51.52%) | 34 (73.91%) | 1 (25%) | 89 (59.73%) |
| Black / African American | 4 (12.12%) | 5 (7.58%) | 4 (8.7%) | 3 (75%) | 16 (10.74%) |
| Two or more ethnicities | 0 (0%) | 2 (3.03%) | 0 (0%) | 0 (0%) | 2 (1.34%) |
| Asian | 0 (0%) | 2 (3.03%) | 0 (0%) | 0 (0%) | 2 (1.34%) |
| Asian/Pacific American | 0 (0%) | 1 (1.52%) | 2 (4.35%) | 0 (0%) | 3 (2.01%) |
| Hispanic/Latino | 9 (27.27%) | 22 (33.33%) | 6 (13.04%) | 0 (0%) | 37 (24.83%) |
| Total (Percent of Chamber) | 33 (22.15%) | 66 (44.3%) | 46 (30.87%) | 4 (2.68%) | 149 (100%) |
The Texas Senate
Below is information covering age dynamics in the recently elected Texas Senate
- The average age of Texas State Senate members is 61.09 years
- The youngest Senator is Molly Cook, born in 1991
- The oldest Senator is Bob Hall, born in 1942
- 1 member of the Texas State Senate is a Young Elected Leader, aged 35 or younger as of Election Day 2024
Young Elected Senators in the Texas State Senate
Following the 2024 State Legislative Elections in Texas, one member aged 35 or under was elected to (and currently serves in) the Texas State Senate.
Young Elected Senator — Texas Senate (Age ≤ 35)
| Name | District | Birth Year (Age on Election Day 2024) | First Elected | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
Molly Cook (D) | District 15 — Houston, TX | 1991 (Age 33) | 2024 |
Photos courtesy of the Texas Senate Member Roster.
Partisanship in the Texas State Senate
In the Texas State Senate, 20 senators belong to the Republican Party, and 11 senators are Democrats. The mean age of Democratic state senators after the 2024 election was 59.08, while the mean age of Republican state senators was 62.2. Each generation has a different partisan makeup; overall, the Texas State Senate is overwhelmingly composed of Baby Boomers and Generation X. Below is the breakdown of party composition by generation in the Texas State Senate.
Gender in the Texas Senate
The generational makeup of the Texas Senate reveals notable gender dynamics. Overall, men are overrepresented across all age groups, especially among older generations. These patterns indicate that gender representation varies across generations, with women being represented in every generational cohort.
Race and Ethnicity in the Texas Senate
The racial and ethnic composition of the Texas Senate shows generational variation. The table below presents the distribution by generation.
Generations by Race/Ethnicity in the Texas Senate
| Ethnicity | Millennial Generation 1981–1996 |
Generation X 1965–1980 |
Boomer Generation 1946–1964 |
Full Chamber |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| White / Caucasian | 2 (100%) | 6 (50%) | 13 (76.47%) | 21 (67.74%) |
| Black / African American | 0 (0%) | 1 (8.33%) | 1 (5.88%) | 2 (6.45%) |
| Hispanic/Latino | 0 (0%) | 5 (41.67%) | 3 (17.65%) | 8 (25.81%) |
| Total (Percent of Chamber) | 2 (6.45%) | 12 (38.71%) | 17 (54.84%) | 31 (100%) |
The full Texas State Senate comprises 31 seats.
Notes
The Young Elected Leaders Project applies the generational categorization of the Pew Research Center:
- Silent Generation: 1928 – 1945
- Baby Boomer Generation: 1946 – 1964
- Generation X: 1965 – 1980
- Millennial Generation: 1981 – 1996
- Generation Z: 1997 – 2012
This analysis is based on data from the most recent state legislative election in Texas, which took place on November 5th 2024.
Citation Guideline
In referencing the Young Elected Leaders Project in publication please use the following language: “The Young Elected Leaders Project is housed at the Center for Youth Political Participation at The Eagleton Institute of Politics, Rutgers University – New Brunswick.”
Bibliographic Citation For this document
Author: Young Elected Leaders Project
Corresponding Authors: George D. Quinn, Adil Khan
Year: 2024
Title: Age in the 2025 Texas General Assembly