Orlando Lopez schedules weekend canvassing in Royse City and Heath

Orlando Lopez spent the weekend directing volunteers into Royse City and Heath, using door-to-door canvassing to build contact in two of Rockwall County’s most closely watched communities. The Democratic candidate for Texas House District 33 is pressing ahead in a district that is now represented by Republican Katrina Pierson and will be on the ballot in the Nov. 3, 2026 general election.

Lopez’s campaign is leaning on a volunteer sign-up page that asks supporters to opt in for campaign updates and fundraising asks by text. His website says he is running on public education, immigrants in the workforce and affordability, issues the campaign is using to frame its outreach in suburban neighborhoods where a personal knock can still matter more than a social post.

The focus on Royse City and Heath comes as Rockwall County has changed quickly. U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts shows the county grew from 107,819 residents in the 2020 Census to an estimated 140,738 in July 2025. The same data puts Rockwall County’s median household income at $127,981, with 44.5% of adults age 25 and older holding at least a bachelor’s degree and 82.5% of homes owner-occupied. That mix gives any ground operation a county map built around stable housing, higher incomes and communities where voters are likely to be reached at home.

Heath stands out inside that map. The city’s election-information page says residents have a consistently high record of voter participation, which helps explain why canvassing there can carry more weight than a speech at a party event. In a place where turnout is already part of the civic culture, campaigns have to work harder to persuade and mobilize rather than simply introduce themselves.

Lopez also has institutional backing inside Rockwall County’s Democratic ranks. The Rockwall County Democratic Party says it is working to build an inclusive future and support Democratic candidates, placing Lopez’s weekend organizing inside a broader effort to keep Democratic voters engaged in a county that has grown fast and stayed heavily suburban. Lopez, a construction professional and Texas A&M graduate who lives in the district with his wife, Carolina, and daughter, Clara, is betting that sustained door-to-door contact can shape turnout in ways speeches and social media cannot.