November 7, 2024      9:30 AM

Braddock: Democrats collapse nationally and statewide but their voting strength at the Texas Capitol is largely unchanged

Despite a 10-point swing to Republicans statewide, exactly one Democratic incumbent lost in the Legislature while the GOP flipped two open seats; Gov. Abbott is already falsely claiming a mandate for school vouchers and the speaker’s race may have changed a bit but without putting Phelan in peril

Okay let’s all take a breath.

Last night was a terrible night for Democrats statewide. There is no credible argument against that. In modern Texas political history, though, there also isn’t much new about it either. Sen. Ted Cruz remains deeply unpopular but was carried to victory by President-elect Donald Trump’s substantial margin here while Texans for Lawsuit Reform ran the table in judicial races, flipping appellate courts anchored in Houston and DFW that had become Democratic back to Republican.

Emotions are running high in the minority party, to say the least. A frustrated Texas House Democratic Caucus held a meeting the morning after the election described as “pretty bad” as members expressed their deep disappointment with the way the elections unfolded, according to sources in the discussion.

By Scott Braddock

Copyright November 07, 2024, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved