Waco-raised defense attorney Barry Johnson, 61, defeated McLennan County District Attorney Abel Reyna, 45, in the Republican primary Tuesday night.
Reyna conceded the race around 10 p.m. He lost with a little more than 40-percent of the vote, compared to Johnson's nearly 60-percent.
During the campaign, Johnson criticized Reyna's handling of the Twin Peaks case and warned taxpayers about the exorbitant cost of the case to the county.
Johnson pointed to a sworn affidavit, in which a former prosecutor claimed Reyna made sure cases involving friends and campaign supporters never went to trial.
In recent months, Reyna has either refused to prosecute or moved to dismiss a total of 58 Twin Peaks cases. In the last year, Twin Peaks defense attorneys have argued everything from Reyna being a cocaine user to him being under investigation by the FBI. Reyna has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing.
Johnson is a 1979 Baylor University graduate and the son of late Judge Joe N. Johnson, who served his community in various roles for four decades. His grandfather ran the first service station in Waco -- located at Fifth Street and Webster Avenue. Johnson has three adult children.
Back in February, the sole Democratic candidate running for DA, local lawyer Seth Sutton, suspended his campaign.
