Jubilant supporters celebrate James Talarico’s U.S. Senate win on Election Night Credit: John Anderson

Polls were encouraging, betting sites were bullish, but state Democrats still went into election night guarding their hearts. After all, how many “Turn Texas Blue” hopes have been raised over the years, only to be dashed on the seemingly impenetrable rock of GOP rule in Texas? 

And yet, what once seemed improbable, if not impossible, happened this midterm cycle: Texas flipped blue. 

On an historic night, voters handed Dems what U.S. Senator-elect James Talarico called “a mandate the size of Texas,” strongly signaling their displeasure with Republican governance. Talarico will go to D.C. as Texas’ first Democratic senator since 1993. Gina Hinojosa, whose political career began on the Austin ISD board, overcame Greg Abbott to become the state’s first Latina governor. Indeed, the entire state government is swapping red for blue. Travis County legislator Vikki Goodwin ousted longtime Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick. Dallas’ state Sen. Nathan Johnson defeated MAGA acolyte Mayes Middleton to succeed Ken Paxton as attorney general. Jon Rosenthal bested the nakedly racist Bo French for railroad commissioner. Sarah Eckhardt, Clayton Tucker, and Benjamin Flores cinched victories, too, for comptroller, ag commissioner, and land commissioner, respectively. All four Republican Texas Supreme Court justices running for reelection lost their seats to Dems. In yet another jaw-dropper, Democrats took control of the Texas House for the first time in two decades. 

All told, it marks an astonishing turnaround in Texas politics, and about as clear a message as its citizenry could send: After decades of a GOP stranglehold on our government, Texas is ready to try something different.

This article appears in November 6 • 2026.

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A graduate of the Michener Center for Writers at the University of Texas, Kimberley has written about film, books, and pop culture for The Austin Chronicle since 2000. She was named Editor of the Chronicle in 2016; she previously served as the paper’s Managing Editor, Screens Editor, Books Editor, and proofreader. Her work has been awarded by the Association of Alternative Newsmedia for excellence in arts criticism, team reporting, and special section (Best of Austin). The Austin Alliance for Women...