Democrat James Talarico wins Texas Senate race, flipping the seat from Republicans for the first time since 1988, CBS and NBC project
Democrat James Talarico, a 37-year-old Texas state representative, won the U.S. Senate race in Texas on Tuesday night over Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton, CBS News and NBC News project. It is the first time Texas has elected a Democrat to the Senate since 1988 and the third Republican-held seat Democrats flipped tonight. Republican Sen. John Cornyn, whom Paxton beat in the primary, congratulated Talarico on X.
Democrat James Talarico won the U.S. Senate race in Texas on Tuesday night, defeating Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton, CBS News and NBC News project. NBC says it is the first Democratic Senate victory in Texas since 1988, in a state President Donald Trump has won three times. CBS News describes it as a major upset and a flip of a Republican-held seat. Decision Desk HQ also projected a Talarico win, according to The Hill. We did not see an Associated Press call of the race at the time of writing, so these are the news organizations' own projections.
The vote count points the same way. NBC's results page, which uses data from the Associated Press, showed Talarico at 59.4% and Paxton at 39.0% with about 66% of the expected vote reporting at 11:04 p.m. ET (06:04 Romania time).
Republican Sen. John Cornyn, whom Paxton defeated in this year's Republican primary after President Trump made a late endorsement, wrote on X that "the voters have spoken" and congratulated Talarico, CBS News reports. "I look forward to meeting him and offering my assistance with his transition as he prepares to serve Texans in the U.S. Senate," Cornyn wrote.
Talarico, 37, is a state representative, a former teacher and a Presbyterian seminarian, according to CBS News. NBC News reports that he campaigned on a message of wealth disparity and corruption, framed as "top versus bottom instead of left versus right," and overcame what it describes as a $168 million ad campaign against him, as well as nine-figure super PAC donations from Elon Musk to the Republican side. NBC adds that several prominent Republicans publicly pledged support for Talarico rather than Paxton, and that Paxton, who was impeached by the Texas House in 2023 and acquitted by the state Senate, has faced years of personal and legal controversies.
The result is one of three Republican-held Senate seats Democrats have flipped tonight: NBC's tally shows Democrats taking North Carolina, South Carolina and Texas. NBC's Senate page showed Democrats at 48 seats and Republicans at 39, with 13 races uncalled, while CBS News' own tally at 11:04 p.m. ET stood at 48 Democratic seats and 38 Republican seats, with 51 needed for a majority. Republicans entered the night with a 53-47 majority. Neither the AP nor any network has projected control of the Senate; CBS News rates Ohio as likely Democratic and Kansas as leaning Democratic, and Michigan as a toss-up. These are estimates, not calls. For all the latest results, see our live story.
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