Texas has elected a Democrat to the U.S. Senate for the first time since 1988.
James Talarico, a 37-year-old state representative, defeated Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton late Tuesday, according to the Associated Press. It was the first statewide victory for a Texas Democrat since 1994, and it sent a jolt through a state Trump carried by double digits only two years ago.
A night that started with a lead
Early returns hinted at what was coming. With about 38% of the expected vote counted, Talarico was ahead of Paxton, roughly 58% to 40%. Big-city votes often come in first, so networks held off. As the count grew, the lead held, and the AP made its call. Paxton conceded, saying he was congratulating Talarico and would be praying for him. Sen. John Cornyn also posted that the voters had spoken and congratulated the winner.
How Talarico got here
Talarico first drew attention in 2018, when he flipped a heavily Republican state House district that had voted for Trump two years earlier. He is a former teacher and Presbyterian seminarian who talks openly about his faith, and he built a campaign aimed at Democrats, independents and some Republicans.
In March he beat Rep. Jasmine Crockett in the Democratic primary. After that win he told supporters, "We're about to take back Texas."
The opponent who was not supposed to be there
Paxton had his own unlikely path. He won the Republican nomination in a May runoff by defeating Cornyn, a sitting senator, after Trump backed him. The Texas House impeached him in 2023, and the Texas Senate later acquitted him. Republicans spent heavily to keep the seat, and Trump often attacked Talarico at rallies, using him as a national stand-in for Democrats. One GOP strategist told Time that every dollar spent defending Texas was a dollar not spent in other states.
Why it matters
Talarico's win is one of the four seats Democrats needed to flip to take the Senate, which they did Tuesday night along with the House. It is also a major moment for Texas Democrats, who have argued for years that the state is not as Republican as its results suggest, and that many non-voters could swing it with the right candidate. The Hill also reported that Gov. Greg Abbott conceded his own race to Democrat Hinojosa, which would be another historic result for the party in Texas.
It is too soon to say whether this is a lasting shift or simply a good year for Democrats.
Related coverage
Sources: AP, NPR, Time, CBS News, NBC News, The Hill, ABC News and Washington Post election coverage, November 3-4, 2026. Last updated: November 4, 2026.
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