Democrat scores major upset in Texas special election, flipping deep-red state Senate seat

In a surprising political development in Texas on Saturday, Democrat Taylor Rehmet won a special election for the state Senate in District 9, a seat long held by Republicans and located in heavily conservative Tarrant County. 

Rehmet’s win marks one of the most notable Democratic gains in the state in recent years and could be a sign of increased Democratic momentum heading into the 2026 midterm elections, given that Trump won the district overwhelmingly in the 2024 election.

The race for the open seat pitted Rehmet, a Fort Worth-based union leader and Air Force veteran, against Republican Leigh Wambsganss, a conservative activist backed by prominent GOP figures. 

Early returns showed Rehmet defeating Wambsganss by more than 14 points in a district that President Donald Trump carried by roughly 17 points in the 2024 presidential election.

Rehmet will serve out the remainder of the term for the district, which became vacant after the previous Republican senator stepped down for another state position. 

Though Republicans still have the majority in the Texas Legislature overall, the flip of this seat has drawn attention from national political observers as an indicator of a potential surge of Democratic support in traditionally red territory.