--- title: Ted Cruz Is Texas' Only Remaining Statewide Republican Lawmaker description: Cruz was not up for reelection this midterm cycle, but every Republican who was on the ballot in Texas’ statewide races this year has been defeated. canonical: https://time.com/article/2026/11/06/ted-cruz-republican-texas-midterm-elections/ author: Connor Greene article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2026-11-06T20:40:06.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-11-06T22:42:06.519Z article:section: Politics og:title: Ted Cruz Is Texas' Only Remaining Statewide Republican Lawmaker og:description: Cruz was not up for reelection this midterm cycle, but every Republican who was on the ballot in Texas’ statewide races this year has been defeated. og:url: https://time.com/article/2026/11/06/ted-cruz-republican-texas-midterm-elections/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt469bdce841fe8ca0/6aee3814b713ad62206707f8/GettyImages-2294583114.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1024 og:image:height: 576 og:image:alt: GettyImages-2294583114.jpg og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Ted Cruz Is Texas' Only Remaining Statewide Republican Lawmaker twitter:description: Cruz was not up for reelection this midterm cycle, but every Republican who was on the ballot in Texas’ statewide races this year has been defeated. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt469bdce841fe8ca0/6aee3814b713ad62206707f8/GettyImages-2294583114.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 video:duration: 01:00 video:published: 2026-11-04 section: politics topics: Texas politics, victory speech, election win, money in politics, megadonors, politics of love, political division, broken political system, power to the people genre: speech, news tones: triumphant, defiant, populist, hopeful emotions: pride (high), defiance (high), hope (medium), anger (low) sentiment: positive audience: US political news readers, Texas voters, Democratic supporters, election followers people: James Talarico content_suitability: politics [00:00-01:00] transcript_source: publisher captions transcript_reviewed: not applicable ---  # All at Once, Ted Cruz Is the Last Statewide Republican Lawmaker Standing in Texas > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: September 2026. ## TIME D.C. Brief: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition D.C. Brief is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. Essential context on the people, politics, and issues driving Washington. D.C. Brief goes beyond the Washington headlines to explain the politics, personalities and power dynamics shaping what happens next. Senior correspondent Philip Elliott brings sharp context to the issues driving the capital, connecting the decisions made in Washington to the institutions, industries and people they affect. 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It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, twice a week. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=a7a55ae6-97c4-4099-ae2a-b85f89a257c9&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1) ## Video: "Power belongs to the people," James Talarico says in Texas victory speech [Watch (HLS stream): "Power belongs to the people," James Talarico says in Texas victory speech](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/mz0gZyql.m3u8) (1:00)  _Published 2026-11-04. James Talarico just accomplished what no other Democrat in Texas has done in three decades: winning a statewide race._ Description, summary, key points, chapters, key quotes, questions and transcript, where present, were produced automatically from the video or its captions and were not reviewed. ## Summary James Talarico delivers a short victory speech in which he declares that Texas has been taken back. He says the people of Texas have proven that money is no match for them and that a politics of love defeats a politics of division. He directs a message at megadonors and defenders of a political system he calls broken, and closes by stating that power belongs to the people. ## Key points - The speaker opens by declaring that 'we just took back Texas.' (00:00) - He claims the victory proved that all the money in the world is no match for the people of Texas. (00:08) - He says the result showed a politics of division is no match for a politics of love. (00:21) - He says the win sends a message to every billionaire megadonor and every trillionaire megadonor. (00:33) - The message is also addressed to every corrupt defender of what he calls a broken political system in the state and the country. (00:44) - He closes by asserting that power belongs to the people. (00:52) ## Chapters - [00:00 to 00:33] Declaring victory over money and division. The speaker announces that Texas has been taken back and says money and divisive politics lost to the people and a politics of love. - [00:33 to 01:00] Message to megadonors and the system. The speaker sends a message to megadonors and defenders of a broken political system, ending with the claim that power belongs to the people. ## Key quotes - [00:00] James Talarico: "We just took back Texas." - [00:13] James Talarico: "all the money in the world is" - [00:21] James Talarico: "We just showed that a politics of" - [00:26] James Talarico: "division is no match for a politics of love." - [00:52] James Talarico: "Power belongs to the people." ## Questions this video answers - What did James Talarico say after the Texas victory? [00:00] - What does Talarico say is no match for the people of Texas? [00:13] - What does Talarico contrast with a politics of division? [00:21] - Who does Talarico say his victory sends a message to? [00:33] - How does Talarico describe the current political system? [00:44] - What is the closing message of Talarico's speech? [00:52] ## Content suitability - politics [00:00-01:00]: Partisan-leaning victory speech criticizing megadonors and calling the political system corrupt and broken. by [Connor Greene](https://time.com/author/connor-greene/) ## Connor Greene Reporter Nov 6, 2026 8:40 PM UTC James Talarico just accomplished what no other Democrat in Texas has done in three decades: winning a statewide race. by [Connor Greene](https://time.com/author/connor-greene/) ## Connor Greene Reporter Nov 6, 2026 8:40 PM UTC Listen 00:001.0x03:08 Narrated by TIME AI. In the wake of a [blue wave](https://time.com/article/2026/11/04/democrats-power-midterms/) that has washed [Republicans](https://time.com/article/2026/11/04/trump-lame-duck-era/) around the U.S. out of office, Sen. [Ted Cruz](https://time.com/4284790/learning-to-love-ted-cruz/) will soon be the only remaining member of the GOP to hold a statewide-elected political seat in the recently deep-red state of [Texas](https://time.com/article/2026/11/04/what-just-happened-in-texas-changes-everything/). “2026 was not simply a blue wave, it was a blue tsunami,” the three-term Senator said on his [podcast](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SJeuN7DnzFA) following Election Day, when a series of stunning Democratic victories shifted control of both chambers of Congress, as well as Texas’ executive branch and state House, out of Republicans’ hands. “Texas is blue. That is a hard sentence to utter.” Cruz was not up for reelection this midterm season, but every Republican who was on the ballot in Texas’ statewide races this year has been defeated. Incumbent John Cornyn, Texas’ other Republican Senator, lost in his party’s primary to Attorney General Ken Paxton, who went on to lose in the general election to James Talarico. Talarico is the first Democrat the state has elected to the Senate since 1988\. Democrat [Gina Hinojosa](https://time.com/article/2026/11/04/texas-governor-hinojosa-abbott-2026-midterm-elections/) shattered another decades-long streak of Republican victories by beating out incumbent Greg Abbott in Texas’ gubernatorial race, becoming the state’s first-ever Latina governor and the first Democrat elected to the post since the 1990s. The party’s wins in Texas cut beyond those top positions, as well; Democrats on Tuesday claimed multiple seats in the state’s delegation in the U.S. House, as well as its lieutenant governor, attorney general, comptroller, land commissioner, and agricultural commissioner offices; four state Supreme Court seats; a seat on the state’s railroad commission; and control of the lower house of the Texas legislature. **Read More:** [_What Just Happened in Texas Changes Everything_](https://time.com/article/2026/11/04/what-just-happened-in-texas-changes-everything) “Nowhere are the consequences of this election greater than Texas. In the Lone Star State, we lost every single statewide election,” Cruz said on his show. He noted that he had reached out to Talarico to congratulate him on his win and to tell him that he looks forward to working together. He vowed, however, to “defend Texas” if what he referred to as the “newly elected radicals” attempt to raise taxes or relax border policy, among other issues. **Read More**: [_Talarico Wins Texas Senate Race, First Democrat to Win Statewide in More than 30 Years_](https://time.com/article/2026/11/04/talarico-wins-texas-senate-race-first-democrat-to-win-statewide-in-more-than-30-years/) Cruz said that Republicans did not do enough in their campaigns to address Americans’ concerns over the cost of living stemming from the war in Iran. “Tariffs have made everything too expensive, and the Iran war has dragged on too long,” he said. “Understandably, people were pissed off, and elected Republicans didn't do enough to address their very real pain.” Cruz, who campaigned heavily for Republicans leading up to the midterms, first won his Senate seat in 2012, when he beat out Democrat Paul Sadler by 16 percentage [points](https://www.nytimes.com/elections/2012/results/states/texas.html). He was re-elected by a far slimmer margin in 2018, however, defeating Democratic Rep. Beto O’Rourke by only 2.5 [points](https://www.nytimes.com/elections/results/texas-senate). That year, Trump’s first midterms as president, Republicans gained two Senate seats to expand their majority, but lost the lower chamber, in which Democrats gained 41 seats. In his most recent Senate battle in 2024, a presidential election year that saw Trump win Texas by [nearly 14 points](https://www.politico.com/2024-election/results/texas/), Cruz safely defeated Democrat Colin Allred by an 8.5 point [margin](https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2024/11/05/us/elections/results-texas-us-senate.html). Despite the sweeping defeats his party suffered in the state, Cruz remained optimistic that Texas would return to its prior ruby-red status. “Texas will be red again,” he said. “It is dark right now, but it is always darkest before the dawn. And morning is coming. That is my fervent prayer. And that is my commitment to you.” ## Transcript [00:00] We just took back Texas. [00:08] We. We just proved that [00:13] all the money in the world is [00:15] no match for the people of Texas. [00:21] We just showed that a politics of [00:26] division is no match for a politics of love. [00:33] And we just sent a message to [00:37] every billionaire megadonor, [00:39] every trillionaire megadonor. [00:44] Every corrupt defender of [00:47] this broken political system in [00:50] this state, in this country. 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