Democrat Taylor Rehmet has won the special-election runoff for Texas’s Fort Worth-area 9th Senate District, a seat President Trump carried by 17 points in 2024, CNN projects. Rehmet, a union president and Air Force veteran, advanced from the November first round with 48% of the vote and defeated Trump-backed Leigh Wambsganss in the runoff. Trump posted three times in the final two days backing Wambsganss. The result adds to a string of recent Democratic gains in state legislative races ahead of this year’s midterms.
Democrat Taylor Rehmet Flips Trump-Carried Texas Senate Seat in Upset, CNN Projects
Taylor Rehmet is seen in Fort Worth, Texas, on January 14. - Desiree Rios/The New York Times/Redux
Democrat Taylor Rehmet won a special-election runoff for Texas’s Fort Worth-area 9th Senate District, flipping a seat President Donald Trump carried by 17 points in 2024, CNN projected Saturday.
Rehmet, a union president and Air Force veteran, defeated Leigh Wambsganss — a Trump-backed GOP activist and executive at conservative wireless provider Patriot Mobile — after advancing from a crowded November first round in which he received 48% of the vote.
Late Push From Trump
President Trump mounted a late campaign push for Wambsganss, posting three times on social media in the final two days of the contest in support of her candidacy.
Trump Support: Trump posted on social media three times in the last two days of the race backing Leigh Wambsganss.
Broader Context
The victory is the latest in a series of Democratic gains at the state level. Last year, Democrats flipped more than 20 state legislative seats in special or regularly scheduled elections, including a December pickup in Georgia of a district Trump had carried by roughly 12 points. Political observers say wins like Rehmet’s could provide momentum ahead of this year’s midterm elections.
The Texas seat had been vacant since last summer, when Republican Kelly Hancock resigned to become the state’s acting comptroller.
Note: The result is a CNN projection. Official certification and any final vote counts will follow local canvassing and certification procedures.
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