US EditionDemocrat Wins Texas House Seat; Upset in Red State Senate District
Democrats won a Houston-area House seat and a Texas state Senate seat, reducing the GOP's House majority to 218, reflecting voter concern over healthcare, costs, and voting rights.
- On Saturday, Democrat Christian Menefee won a Houston-area special House election, defeating Amanda Edwards, and will serve the remainder of Sylvester Turner’s term through 2026 after a nearly year-long vacancy.
- Since November 2025, Democrats have gained significant wins, and Democrats accused Governor Greg Abbott of delaying special elections to help Republicans maintain a slim majority.
- Taylor Rehmet defeated Leigh Wambsganss 57% to 43% in a Tarrant County runoff, using grassroots door-knocking and Latino and suburban backlash to overcome heavy GOP support.
- Once Menefee is sworn in, Republicans will hold 218 seats and Democrats 214, tightening Speaker Mike Johnson’s margin to lose only one Republican vote.
- Under a redistricting plan, Menefee must run in a March 3 primary against Amanda Edwards and Rep. Al Green, while special elections later this year in Georgia, New Jersey and California could shift House control.
12 Articles
12 Articles
Democrats win special elections in Texas. How significant is it for Trump?
Democrats in the United States are rejoicing over a Texas State Senate special election victory they say reflects growing discontent with President Donald Trump’s policies, months before the US midterm elections.Some commentators are describing the Democratic upset win in Texas as a “political earthquake”, but Trump has dismissed the contest as a “local” race.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of listUnion leader Taylor Rehmet, a Democrat, d…
Democrat wins Texas House seat; upset in red State Senate district
The Republican majority in the U.S. House continues to shrink as the midterm cycle approaches. Democrat Christian Menefee won a special election runoff Saturday in Texas’s 18th Congressional District, a seat opened last year following the death of Democratic Rep. Sylvester Turner. Democrat win narrows GOP House majority Once Menefee is sworn in, Republicans – and Speaker Mike Johnson – will hold a razor-thin 218-214 majority, with three additio…
Trump busted for denying part in GOP's Texas rout: 'He was most definitely involved'
President Donald Trump denied his involvement in a Texas special election after a major Democratic win in Texas flipped a deep red seat blue. Since November 2025, Democrats have gained significant wins in elections, putting Republicans on edge with midterm elections on the horizon this fall, wrote M...
Democrats win House race, flip Texas Senate seat
What happenedChristian Menefee on Saturday won a special election for an open House seat in the Houston-area 18th Congressional District, whittling down the chamber’s already thin Republican majority. In a second Texas runoff election, Democrat Taylor Rehmet scored an upset victory over Republican Leigh Wambsganss for a state Senate seat in Tarrant County. Rehmet, a union leader, beat the conservative activist by 14 points in the solidly Republi…
Texas special election win offers a blueprint for Democrats
When Kelly Hancock stood down from the Texas state Senate last June to take up the position of acting Texas comptroller, Republicans thought they had the race to replace him in the bag. After all, the northern part of Tarrant Country, which contains the city of Fort Worth, hadn’t elected a Democrat as state senator since 1983. In 2024, Trump had won the district by 17%. Despite the recent string of special election victories for Democrats, Gover…
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