Republicans say they'll win back Tarrant County state Senate seat after surprising upset; Democrats predict a blue wave in November
Democrat Taylor Rehmet is savoring his blowout victory over Republican Leigh Wambsganss in the runoff election for state Senate District 9, a Republican majority district that voted overwhelmingly for President Trump in 2024.
"It feels good. I'm honored to be able to do it," said Rehmet. "This isn't red vs. blue. This is right versus wrong."
On Saturday night, Rehmet won the special runoff election by 14 percentage points, 57-43%. Rehmet said he focused his message on funding public schools and lowering costs for working families.
"The results are a testament to hard work that we put in as a community here," he said. "This goes beyond partisan lines. I was focused on unity, bringing people together. We're all Texans. We all want to look out for each other. We're all neighbors. So, that's what I'm going to stick to."
Wambsganss calls Rehmet win a wake-up call for Republicans
Wambsganss declined an interview Monday but, in a statement late Saturday night, she said, "Tonight is a wakeup call for Republicans in Tarrant County, Texas, and the nation. The Democrats were energized. Too many Republicans stayed home."
Wambsganss and Rehmet emerged as the top two candidates from the November election. A second Republican candidate, John Huffman, came in third and didn't make the runoff.
Ross Hunt, a Republican pollster in Dallas and principal of Hunt Research, told CBS News Texas that one warning sign for the Tarrant County GOP is that Rehmet not only won votes from Democrats and many Independents, but from some Republicans as well.
Rehmet will serve until the end of December, which is the remainder of the term for Republican State Senator Kelly Hancock, who resigned last year to become Acting Texas Comptroller. Both Rehmet and Wambsganss will face off again this November in a rematch. The winner will serve a four-year term that begins in January 2027.
Republicans confident in November comeback
Tarrant County's Republican Party Chairman, Tim Davis, told CBS News Texas that Hancock won handily in 2022 and that Republicans will show up this November, unlike this past weekend.
"There will be a lot more voters in November," Davis said. "That's what we're looking towards. That's what we're looking forward to, is this election will be back on the ballot in November, and these same candidates will be head-to-head again in November, and we expect the result to be different."
Republicans, including Gov. Greg Abbott, predicted Wambsganss would win because there are more Republicans than Democrats in State Senate District 9 in Tarrant County.
When asked how he could be sure that Republicans will take back the seat, given the results, Davis said, "I think the numbers don't lie. The folks that live here are conservative; they support our party, they support our values that we're advocating for and our issues."
Allison Campolo, Chairwoman of the Tarrant County Democratic Party, told CBS News Texas that she had a good feeling Rehmet would win.
"We're elated," said Campolo.
She said Republicans won't be able to make up for Wambsganss' loss and she predicted Rehmet's win will lead to a blue wave in Tarrant County in November.
"Yes, there'll be more Republicans in November, but there'll be way more Democrats, and so we're not only going to hold onto SD-9, but that race, that win, is going to carry us to win every single race that's important to us, from county judge, to county clerk, to every single judicial face, to flipping several State House seats," Campolo said. "This will be a clean sweep for Democrats come November."
Hunt cast doubt on that, saying it's hard to take a special runoff election in a single race in late January and translate that to a general election in November.
Rehmet will likely not vote on any bills this year because the state legislature is not in session. But he will be assigned to legislative committees that may prepare for the next session beginning in January.
Watch Eye On Politics at 7:30 Sunday morning on CBS News Texas on air and streaming.