The 1988 United States Senate election in Texas was held on November 8, 1988. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Lloyd Bentsen won re-election to a fourth term, defeating Republican U.S. Representative Beau Boulter. Bentsen easily won the Democratic nomination for another term, while Boulter came through a run-off in the Republican primary defeating Wes Gilbreath. After winning renomination, Bentsen was chosen by Democratic presidential nominee Michael Dukakis as his vice-presidential running mate and therefore ran for both the Senate and the vice-presidency at the same time. Although the presidential ticket lost the general election and did not carry Texas, Bentsen was always the favorite for the Senate election and won with 59.2% of the vote, compared to 40% for Boulter.