Hinojosa, Talarico Projected to Win Major Texas Races

Texas voters delivered a projected Democratic breakthrough on November 3, with state Rep. Gina Hinojosa projected to defeat Gov. Greg Abbott and state Rep. James Talarico called the winner of the U.S. Senate race against Ken Paxton. Abbott conceded as preliminary returns showed Hinojosa with a wide lead, while Talarico’s victory was called shortly after 10 p.m. Central time. Final certified totals and margins were not established in the election-night reporting. The Senate call marked a rare statewide win for Democrats in Texas. With roughly 69% of votes counted, Talarico had about 59% to Paxton’s 40%, according to preliminary returns. Those figures could change as additional ballots were counted. Hinojosa’s projected win would end the Republican hold on the governor’s office that began after Ann Richards left office; Abbott had been seeking a fourth term. Democrats also won the railroad commissioner race and several seats in the Texas House and Senate, though control of the legislature remained in flux. The broader results signaled a shift across statewide contests, but the election-night accounts did not establish the final outcome of every lower-level race. Hinojosa, an...