James Talarico wins Texas Senate race in a massive flip for Democrats
Democrat James Talarico shook the national political landscape Nov. 3 by defeating Republican Ken Paxton for U.S. Senate in deep red Texas, becoming the first Democrat to win that seat since 1988, according to projections from the Associated Press and NBC News.
His win is one of the most significant flips in modern history after Democrats spent nearly a decade trying to win a Senate seat in Texas. The 37-year-old state legislator's victory also puts Texas, a political powerhouse with 40 electoral votes, the second most in the country behind California, in play ahead of the 2028 presidential election.
"This is a win the size of Texas," Talarico said during an election night victory speech. "And now, we have a mandate the size of Texas."
"This election was about chasing a vision of what this state can be: Texas public schools that are the envy of the nation, a Texas economy that is second to none and Texas families that are stronger and healthier than they've ever been before," he added. "It won't happen overnight, but a giant state deserves giant dreams."
In the lead-up to the Nov. 3 election, Talarico had secured a coveted voting bloc: Latino voters. Hispanic voters account for more than a third of Texas' electorate, the second-largest portion of any state behind New Mexico.
For years, Democrats hoped that Texas could be in play as the state grew more diverse. Charismatic Democratic Senate nominees, such as Beto O'Rourke in 2018, raised hopes of turning the state blue on the back of the Latino vote, only to see those hopes consistently dashed on Election Day.
But a majority of Hispanic voters in Texas, who had previously backed Democrats, voted for President Donald Trump in 2024. Trump won 55% of the Latino vote in the state, up 13 percentage points from 2020 and 27 percentage points from 2016, according to the Texas Politics Project.
The Latino swing back towards Democrats powered the party's surge in 2026.
Talarico framed much of his campaign around a more populist-aligned economic message that urged Texans to stop looking at traditional liberal and conservative labels. Instead, he focused his message on fighting the super-wealthy, including Elon Musk, the world's richest person, who spent millions in favor of Paxton.
"Elon Musk wants our land. He wants our water. He wants our tax dollars. He wants his very own personal United States senator," Talarico said during an October rally in San Antonio.
Contributing: Arit John