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Demsrule86

(71,516 posts)
Sun Feb 1, 2026, 07:36 AM 18 hrs ago

Democrats flip Texas state Senate seat in shock upset

‘Democrats scored a stunning upset on Saturday in a special election runoff for Texas Senate, according to a projection from Decision Desk HQ, giving the party a major boost ahead of the November midterms.
Fort Worth Democrat Taylor Rehmet, a machinist and Air Force veteran, defeated Southlake Republican Leigh Wambsganss to fill the vacant state Senate District 9.’

Trump won this seat by 17 points in 24.

https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/5716988-democrats-score-upset-texas/

36 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
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Democrats flip Texas state Senate seat in shock upset (Original Post) Demsrule86 18 hrs ago OP
With way less money................... Lovie777 18 hrs ago #1
Exactly right. And this is TEXAS!!!! Demsrule86 18 hrs ago #2
And the fact they lost a seat that Trump won by 17 points...tells us Demsrule86 15 hrs ago #18
Yes, I read the Repub outspent the Dem by over $2 million Jersey Devil 16 hrs ago #6
And, without Pervert Hoover's endorsement. GoCubsGo 16 hrs ago #7
Trump is so sick...when I was 12 and babysat...the Dads would drive me home...and more than one tried to put Demsrule86 15 hrs ago #19
... orangecrush 15 hrs ago #26
The Democratic candidate was outspent by 20-1 LetMyPeopleVote 10 hrs ago #34
Great News! 617Blue 17 hrs ago #3
Very good news!!!! Demsrule86 17 hrs ago #4
Great news! callous taoboy 17 hrs ago #5
That says a lot. Jasmine Crockett CAN defeat John Cornyn for the US Senate! ProudMNDemocrat 16 hrs ago #8
Cornyn can point the finger at himself. Dr. T 16 hrs ago #15
I think she can...that is a statewide vote too. Demsrule86 15 hrs ago #20
And he won by over 14 points PatSeg 16 hrs ago #9
So 17 + 14 31 point shift Strelnikov_ 16 hrs ago #10
That's what I was thinking PatSeg 16 hrs ago #12
Their policies have become HUGELY unpopular, even though we warned them. CrispyQ 15 hrs ago #30
It is unbelievable that it had to get THIS bad PatSeg 13 hrs ago #32
Seriously. Who the hell can support the recent insanity? paleotn 16 hrs ago #14
Wow...that is a amazing!!!! Demsrule86 15 hrs ago #22
Wow...I had not thought of that... Demsrule86 15 hrs ago #23
This gives me hope! pinkstarburst 16 hrs ago #11
Wasn't even close. A 31 percentage point flip from the 2024 presidential race. paleotn 16 hrs ago #13
Hust, NRH and a big chunk of Fort Worth, it's a typical north central Texas district Torchlight 16 hrs ago #16
"Yippee Ki-Yay, motherf****r" cbabe 15 hrs ago #17
Everyone hates Trump in Bedford Ohio where I live...there is one guy who plows and shovels who has Demsrule86 15 hrs ago #24
Make Texas Blue Again IronLionZion 15 hrs ago #21
Texas will be the new Virginia soon I hope. Demsrule86 15 hrs ago #25
There's hope. The same state that foisted Greg Abbott and Ken Paxton on the country Buns_of_Fire 15 hrs ago #29
Yeee doggies! GreenWave 15 hrs ago #27
I cannot wait for the Talarico victory party - TBF 15 hrs ago #28
I have my fingers crossed! I really like him! pinkstarburst 8 hrs ago #36
And I helped, even with County judge Tim O'Hare's shenanigans MagickMuffin 14 hrs ago #31
I hope and pray there is still enough decency and common sense in the American people Mysterian 11 hrs ago #33
I have been active in Texas politics for a long time and I am still hoping that Texas will turn blue LetMyPeopleVote 10 hrs ago #35

Demsrule86

(71,516 posts)
2. Exactly right. And this is TEXAS!!!!
Sun Feb 1, 2026, 07:55 AM
18 hrs ago

The Texas seat is in a district Trump won by 17 points in 24.

Demsrule86

(71,516 posts)
18. And the fact they lost a seat that Trump won by 17 points...tells us
Sun Feb 1, 2026, 10:13 AM
15 hrs ago

that the GOP is in big trouble...

GoCubsGo

(34,736 posts)
7. And, without Pervert Hoover's endorsement.
Sun Feb 1, 2026, 09:19 AM
16 hrs ago

Which obviously did not help his opponent.

Demsrule86

(71,516 posts)
19. Trump is so sick...when I was 12 and babysat...the Dads would drive me home...and more than one tried to put
Sun Feb 1, 2026, 10:16 AM
15 hrs ago

his hand on private areas... I never told my parents.

LetMyPeopleVote

(176,319 posts)
34. The Democratic candidate was outspent by 20-1
Sun Feb 1, 2026, 03:55 PM
10 hrs ago


TX SD-9 Fundraising:
🔴 Leigh Wambsganss: $2.5 million
🔵 Taylor Rehmet: $380k

TX SD-9 Results (>95% Reported):
🔵 Taylor Rehmet: 57.2%
🔴 Leigh Wambsganss: 42.8%

ProudMNDemocrat

(20,667 posts)
8. That says a lot. Jasmine Crockett CAN defeat John Cornyn for the US Senate!
Sun Feb 1, 2026, 09:22 AM
16 hrs ago

Ole Greg and company are going to see that Texas is not as RED as they think it is.

Fingers will be pointed at TACO Don, his economic and immigration policies, his immorality, Jeffrey Epstein, Tariffs(the taxing of American consumers and more.)

Americans all across the country are fed up. More MURDER by ICE and HIGHER PRICES will break the elephant's back for sure.

Dr. T

(538 posts)
15. Cornyn can point the finger at himself.
Sun Feb 1, 2026, 10:05 AM
16 hrs ago

Compliance with the orange catastrophe can be fatal to your political career.

Strelnikov_

(8,129 posts)
10. So 17 + 14 31 point shift
Sun Feb 1, 2026, 09:45 AM
16 hrs ago

At first, sounds unrealistic.

However, could be representative.

They are down to dead-enders for support.

PatSeg

(52,471 posts)
12. That's what I was thinking
Sun Feb 1, 2026, 09:52 AM
16 hrs ago

If the margins were very close, it would be hard to be optimistic that it could be a trend, but a 31 point shift in one year is remarkable, especially in a state like Texas.

CrispyQ

(40,778 posts)
30. Their policies have become HUGELY unpopular, even though we warned them.
Sun Feb 1, 2026, 11:05 AM
15 hrs ago

Maybe killing a responsible, gun-carrying, white, professional male, exercising his First & Second Amendments rights, was finally the line in the sand? It's one thing when a pollster is calling & another when you're in the privacy of a voting booth.

PatSeg

(52,471 posts)
32. It is unbelievable that it had to get THIS bad
Sun Feb 1, 2026, 12:54 PM
13 hrs ago

before some of these people finally got a clue. Good point that some were probably unlikely to be forthcoming with a pollster.

Perhaps people are starting to realize that there is a real danger to openly opposing the current regime.

pinkstarburst

(1,890 posts)
11. This gives me hope!
Sun Feb 1, 2026, 09:45 AM
16 hrs ago

I would love to see whomever prevails in the James Talarico-Jasmine Crockett primary beat Cornyn for that senate seat in November.

paleotn

(21,806 posts)
13. Wasn't even close. A 31 percentage point flip from the 2024 presidential race.
Sun Feb 1, 2026, 10:00 AM
16 hrs ago

Perhaps there is hope that average Texans are extracting their collective heads out of their collective asses. If Texas finally gets over that hump, as Virginia did after 2004, Repukes are dead nationally.

Dems have a unique opportunity not just in TX but nationally with all that's been going on. Pukes can't run from Donnie's galactic fuck ups. If we do this right, 2026 could make the 1994 congressional landslide look small by comparison. Please, Dems, don't lose this once in a generation opportunity.

Torchlight

(6,448 posts)
16. Hust, NRH and a big chunk of Fort Worth, it's a typical north central Texas district
Sun Feb 1, 2026, 10:05 AM
16 hrs ago

nothing exceptionally poor or extravagant about it. Some retail, some distribution, some manufactiring, a lot of bedroom communitis and neighborhoods.

A very typical, rather boring district dramtically shifted about 30 gross points in this election awat from the degenerate in the white house.

An eye-opener of how 'typica;' may start to look in the coming elections...

Demsrule86

(71,516 posts)
24. Everyone hates Trump in Bedford Ohio where I live...there is one guy who plows and shovels who has
Sun Feb 1, 2026, 10:31 AM
15 hrs ago

Trump shit up and he basically sat home during a three food snow storm because no one will hire him.

Buns_of_Fire

(19,047 posts)
29. There's hope. The same state that foisted Greg Abbott and Ken Paxton on the country
Sun Feb 1, 2026, 11:03 AM
15 hrs ago

also gave us Ann Richards and Molly Ivins.

TBF

(35,925 posts)
28. I cannot wait for the Talarico victory party -
Sun Feb 1, 2026, 10:48 AM
15 hrs ago

sent another donation his way yesterday!!

pinkstarburst

(1,890 posts)
36. I have my fingers crossed! I really like him!
Sun Feb 1, 2026, 05:15 PM
8 hrs ago

Wish we could have him and Jasmine, both.

MagickMuffin

(18,163 posts)
31. And I helped, even with County judge Tim O'Hare's shenanigans
Sun Feb 1, 2026, 11:12 AM
14 hrs ago


And it feels real good.

I watched a fb video which looked to be in a bar. A young man asks Wombass if she was ready to lose to Taylor and she attacked his phone, tried to knock it out of his hand.

She could've just said, we'll see after the votes have been counted. Instead she choose violence. Always with the Violence with these maga cultists.






Mysterian

(6,235 posts)
33. I hope and pray there is still enough decency and common sense in the American people
Sun Feb 1, 2026, 02:27 PM
11 hrs ago

that they will reject resoundingly the ugliness and treason of trumpism.

LetMyPeopleVote

(176,319 posts)
35. I have been active in Texas politics for a long time and I am still hoping that Texas will turn blue
Sun Feb 1, 2026, 03:58 PM
10 hrs ago

I have been following some demographic trends for a while that would indicate that Texas should turn blue. Texas is getting older and more urban. Texas was more republican that these trends would indicate in 2024 in large part because Hispanics voted for trump and the GOP in larger numbers than what one would expect. I grew up in or near the Rio Grand Valley that went for trump. I was surprised by this result.

Last night was a great result in a state senate runoff race where a Democrat won a seat by 14 percentage points that trump won by 17 percentage points.



If this swing was held up nationally, Texas would be blue as would the rest of the country


This race was largely symbolic in that the next time the next time the Texas legis will be in session will be after the November elections and special elections are not necessarily representative of national/regular elections.

I am encouraged by the fact that Hispanic voters in SD 9 went for the Democrat.


In Texas, there is a racist tradition called sundown towns where non-whites used to have to be out of the city limits by sundown or face lynching. Vidor Texas is one such city. The democrat in this race flipped a local sundown city in this race


These results are encouraging to me. I still believe that Texas will turn blue. trump's alienation of Hispanic voters should continue given the current ICE operations.
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