Democrats in Texas are hoping to make significant gains in the November 3, 2026, midterm elections, with Senate candidate James Talarico and gubernatorial candidate Gina Hinojosa seeking to unseat Republican opponents. The effort is an ambitious one in a state where Donald Trump won by 14 points in the 2024 presidential election.
Talarico and Hinojosa held their final campaign event on November 2 at Stubb’s, a music venue in central Austin. The city, Texas’s administrative capital, is a Democratic stronghold, and attendees expressed hopes for change on issues including political corruption, abortion policy, water use and public education.
Some supporters said they backed the candidates because they want to curb corruption. Others pointed to Texas’s total abortion ban and its effects on maternal mortality, while one attendee criticized the expansion of data centers for using large amounts of the state’s water. Support for investment in public schools was also raised.
Talarico, 37, is reported to be ahead of Republican Ken Paxton in polls. Texas has not elected a Democratic senator since 1988, making a victory for Talarico a potential historic shift.
Sources: Le Monde International.