Bucking past trends, Golden Triangle voters swayed to the right in 2010, casting their ballots for Republican candidates across the board.
While the majority of Jefferson County elected officials ran unopposed, easily winning reelection, Southeast Texas voters did, however, push Republican candidates to victory in other hotly contested statewide races.
In Jefferson County, U.S. Rep. Ted Poe of District 2 easily defeated his Libertarian challenger, David Smith, capturing 87.58 percent of the 37,390 total votes cast.
Gov. Rick Perry also fared well among Jefferson County voters, collecting 27,709 votes for 50.47 percent. His Democrat rival Bill White managed 26,433 votes.
Perry's Republican counterpart, Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, surpassed him by gathering 29,369 votes or 54.22 percent. His opponent, Linda Chavez-Thompson, settled for 43.90 percent of the vote.
Attorney General Greg Abbott received 30,249 votes from Jefferson County residents, 6,984 more than Democrat Barbara Ann Radnofsky.
Jefferson County residents also favored Republican candidates running for the Texas Supreme Court, bestowing all three Republican hopefuls with more than 51 percent of the vote.
Supreme Court Place 3 Republican candidate Debra Lehrmann netted 27,529 votes or 51.18 percent; Justice Paul Green, Place 5, received 27,675 votes or 51.64 percent; and Justice Eva Guzman got 27,636 votes or 51.62 percent.
The majority of Jefferson County residents also voted for Republican incumbents in the following races: Comptroller of Public Accounts Susan Combs; Land Commissioner Jerry Patterson; Commissioner of Agriculture Todd Staples; and Railroad Commissioner David Porter.
Ninth Court of Appeals Justice Charles Kreger, Republican incumbent, trounced his Democrat challenger, Ron Mangus, receiving 28,293 votes for a total of 53.41 percent.
Locally, Democrats Judge Bob Wortham, 58th District Court, and Judge Donald Floyd, 172nd District Court, ran unopposed, receiving 34,269 votes and 32,566 votes respectively.
In Orange County, voters leaned even more to the right, awarding Republicans in most cases with 70 percent of the vote.
Perry received 66.73 percent of Orange County votes, while Dewhurst captured 72.67. Abbott landed 74.80 percent while Combs surpassed them all with 87.94.
U.S. Rep. Kevin Brady netted 14,498 votes, beating Democrat Kevin Hargettt by a margin of 54.51 percent.