State Rep. Terry Canales
An Edinburg attorney and native of South Texas, Rep. Canales chairs the House Subcommittee on Transportation Funding and previously chaired the full House Transportation Committee from 2019-2025, becoming the first Latino to hold that position. He represents the heart of Hidalgo County.
- Term
- Jan. 14, 2025 – Jan. 12, 2027
- Serving since
- 2013
- Seniority
- #37 of 150
- Occupation
- Attorney
- Education
- B.A. & J.D., St. Mary’s University
- Next election
- Nov. 7, 2028 (primary March 7, 2028)
Contact
District
Official House District 40 map (PDF)
- Counties
- Hidalgo (Part)
- Cities & CDPs
- César Chávez, Doolittle, Edinburg (Part), Elsa, La Blanca, La Coma Heights, Linn (Part), Lopezville (Part), McAllen (Part), Murillo, Pharr (Part), San Carlos, San Juan (Part)
- Region
- South Texas
District Profile
- Hispanic 92.7%
- Anglo 4.7%
- Black 1.2%
- Asian 1.4%
How this district voted
Source: Texas Legislative Council, PLANH2316 reports Red-100 (2020 Census) and Red-206 (2024 general election).
Committees
89th Legislature (2025)
Legislation
89th Legislature (2025)
Biography
Rep. Terry Canales was first elected to the Texas House of Representatives in 2012, representing District 40, which covers the heart of Hidalgo County. This district includes the cities of Edinburg (Hidalgo County seat), Elsa, César Chávez, Murillo, La Coma Heights, San Carlos, La Blanca, Linn, Lopezville, and portions of McAllen, Pharr, and San Juan.
In 2025, Rep. Canales was appointed by Texas Speaker of the House Dustin Burrows to serve as Chair of the Subcommittee on Transportation Funding, a subcommittee of the House Committee on Transportation.
From 2019 to January 2025, Rep. Canales served as Chairman of the House Transportation Committee, becoming the first Latino to hold this position. In 2025 Speaker Burrows reappointed him to serve as a member of the House Transportation Committee, marking his third consecutive session on the committee. In 2023, he was one of the twelve House impeachment managers in the impeachment trial of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in the Texas Senate.
During his tenure, Rep. Canales has worked on legislation related to government transparency, public participation in local government meetings, public education funding, criminal justice reform, and debtor’s prison reform.
Rep. Canales earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science from the University of the Incarnate Word and his Juris Doctor from St. Mary’s University School of Law at the age of 24. His father Terry A. Canales was a former State District Judge and the first Hispanic State Representative to represent Jim Wells County (1973–1977), and his uncle is Arnulfo Gonzalez Jr. He is the sixth member of his extended family to serve in the Texas House of Representatives — his great-uncle Jose Tomás Canales was a founding member of LULAC and served five terms between 1905 and 1921. Rep. Canales is married to Erica E. Canales. They have five children: Juliana, Terry Andres, Caleb Ezra, Trígo, and Catalina. They live in Edinburg.
Biography adapted from the official Texas House website.
Campaign Finance
TPR Coverage
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Service History
- Texas House, District 40 · 2013–present
