FORT WORTH, Texas — Democrat Taylor Rehmet won a special-election runoff Saturday to represent Texas Senate District 9, defeating Republican activist Leigh Wambsganss in a Tarrant County seat long held by the GOP. The double-digit margin — powered by stronger Democratic turnout and a fractured Republican field in the first round — turned a typically low-profile contest into an early test of party energy heading into the November 2026 midterm elections, Jan. 31, 2026.
According to a cumulative results report posted by Tarrant County Elections, Rehmet received 54,280 votes (57.21%) to Wambsganss’ 40,600 (42.79%), with 94,938 ballots cast in the runoff.
In a statement reported by Reuters, Wambsganss congratulated Rehmet and called the loss a “wake-up call” for Republicans. “The Democrats were energized,” she said. “Too many Republicans stayed home.” She blamed a weekend storm for dampening turnout and said she expects a rematch in November for a full four-year term.
Rehmet, a union machinist and U.S. Air Force veteran, told supporters, “This win goes to everyday working people,” the Associated Press reported.
President Donald Trump had urged voters to back Wambsganss but sought to distance himself after the results. “I’m not involved in that. That’s a local Texas race,” he said, according to the Associated Press.
Texas Senate District 9 and the stakes ahead of 2026
The seat opened after four-term Republican Kelly Hancock resigned in June 2025 to take a role in the state comptroller’s office. Gov. Greg Abbott later set the Nov. 4 special election date, the Texas Tribune reported at the time.
Rehmet led the crowded first-round ballot with about 48% but fell short of a majority, pushing the contest into a runoff between him and Wambsganss. Ahead of that first round, Fort Worth Report and KERA described a three-way fight that featured competing messages on taxes, schools and public safety, with Republicans splitting key donor networks and conservative endorsements.
The runoff result also highlighted how quickly political assumptions can shift in Texas Senate District 9, which leans more Republican than Tarrant County overall. NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth reported that Rehmet jumped out to a clear lead once early-voting totals were posted, and he finished with roughly 14,000 more votes than Wambsganss.
How the candidates built their coalitions in Texas Senate District 9
Rehmet ran on cost-of-living pressures, public school funding and job security, arguing that Texas Senate District 9 voters were ready for a more pocketbook-focused message. Democrats portrayed the outcome as proof they can compete in traditionally Republican parts of the Fort Worth suburbs when organizing is sustained through low-turnout elections.
Wambsganss, a longtime conservative activist, campaigned on culture-war priorities and party loyalty, with national Republicans treating Texas Senate District 9 as a must-hold. She built her profile during North Texas school board battles, a movement the Texas Tribune chronicled in 2022 as outside spending and political action committees pushed hard-right candidates in local races.
Republicans still hold a comfortable majority in the Texas Senate and the Legislature is not scheduled to reconvene until 2027. But the flip in Texas Senate District 9 gives Democrats a rare foothold in Tarrant County — and both parties an unusually high-stakes rematch — in November.
A deep-red Texas senate seat just flipped blue in a quiet runoff that’s now echoing loudly into the 2026 midterms.
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