Tarrant County flips blue, supporting Democrats up and down the midterms ballot

Editor’s note: This article was updated with unofficial results at 9:45 a.m. Nov. 4.  

Tarrant County flipped solidly blue, supporting Democrats for county, state and federal offices in the Nov. 3 midterm elections. 

In addition to flipping the countywide executive position, Tarrant voters supported Democrats at the top of the statewide ballot, including Gina Hinojosa for governor and James Talarico for U.S. Senate, according to unofficial results. 

Hinojosa won 410,931 votes in Tarrant County, or 56.34%, according to unofficial results from the county elections office. Incumbent Republican Greg Abbott, who conceded the race to Hinojosa, won 42.13% of Tarrant. 

In the U.S. Senate race, Talarico won 427,879 votes, or 58.72% of Tarrant County. Republican Ken Paxton, who conceded the race, won 39.5% of the county.  

On the county level, Alisa Simmons became the first Democrat to win the county judge seat in 40 years, and the first Black person and woman to win the office. She won with 56.4% of votes. 

Mansfield resident Tionna Days, 32, believes Texas incumbents have had their chance. 

“It’s time for us to see a change,” said Days, who cast an all-Democratic ticket, backing Hinojosa for governor and Simmons for county judge.

As a minority, protecting rights and ensuring people are heard regardless of their income or neighborhoods all helped shape her choice, Days said. As a Christian, she opposes imposing religious beliefs on students, instead weighing school funding, student meals and classroom lessons as important education topics. 

As more people approached the polling site, her 1-year-old, Amina, looked on.

“I feel like a lot of the policies that they’re implementing are narrow-minded, and that’s not why we’re sending our kids. We’re sending our kids to learn. We’re sending our kids to be open-minded,” said Days, who has three children of her own at Mansfield ISD and two stepchildren at Fort Worth ISD.

Fort Worth resident Miroslava Montero, 33, said — as a former teacher herself — she was excited to support Talarico, saying he understands the issues her young family is experiencing. She’s never been a straight-ticket voter and took her time researching candidates before making her choices. 

Ultimately, Montero said, she expected a “small blue wave” but hoped to see a purple Tarrant County. 

“You don’t want one singular mindset — you want different mindsets working together for the interests of everyone, not just for their own sake,” Montero said, standing outside north Fort Worth’s Summerglen library.

About 1.37 million people are registered to vote in Tarrant County. During the early voting period, nearly 572,000 people voted early in-person at the polls. As of Monday, more than 22,000 people had voted by mail, according to the elections office. 

During the 2022 midterms, about 389,000 people voted early in-person, and another roughly 23,000 people voted by mail. The 2018 midterms drew almost 433,000 in-person early voters and nearly 37,000 voters by mail. 

Midterm elections occur at the two-year mark of a presidential term, allowing voters to influence which political party controls the House of Representatives and Senate. The Nov. 3 ballot featured Democratic and Republican nominees chosen by voters during the March primaries. 

Tuesday marked Fort Worth resident Eli Mishoe’s first time voting. The 18-year-old said he was excited to support Talarico, who he met on his college campus at the University of North Texas, as well as Hinojosa. The two candidates represent Mishoe’s stances that “the border should be very secure and very open” and for increased taxation on the country’s wealthiest, the voter said. 

Mishoe voted Democratic in every race except for the uncontested Republican-held seats, he said. 

“It’s not that I don’t like Republicans. It’s just that, I feel, if we really want to see change, I don’t think we’re gonna see that with the Republican Party right now,” Mishoe said. 

Mishoe hoped to see Talarico drive a “blue wave” through Tarrant County, stressing that he didn’t think it’s necessarily a bad thing for Republicans to keep control of the county but that change could be good for all of Texas. 

Fort Worth resident Marlene Kyle, 72, said she was “trying to make a change” when she cast her ballot at the Northpark YMCA. 

“Get the right ones in,” Kyle said. “We’re in a mess as it is, so gotta do something.” 

After moving from the small town of Redwater east of Texarkana, Kyle said she appreciates Tarrant County’s conservative climate and hopes to help keep the county red. She was excited to support Abbott’s reelection bid for governor and Paxton’s campaign for Senate, and voted Republican all the way down the ballot. 

“If it turns blue, we’re gonna be in trouble,” Kyle said.

To find out more about the races and each of the candidates on the ballot, visit the Fort Worth Report’s past election reporting at Election Central, as well as our Tarrant County Voter Guide. Below are the results the Report is tracking. 

County judge

• Simmons claims victory over O’Hare, flipping Tarrant County judge seat blue

County commissioner, Precinct 2

• Democrat Jared Williams wins Tarrant County’s redrawn Precinct 2 after GOP-led redistricting

County commissioner, Precinct 4

• Cárdenas keeps lead over Ramirez for Tarrant County Precinct 4 commissioners court seat

Criminal district attorney

• Burks wins rematch against Sorrells in race for Tarrant County DA

District clerk and county clerk 

• Tarrant County district, county clerk Democratic challengers ahead against Republicans

Fort Worth-area Texas House representatives

• Mizani claims victory in Texas House race. Here’s where other Fort Worth-area seats stand

Arlington-area Texas House representatives 

• Democrats holding leads in races for Arlington-area state house seats

Tarrant County’s Texas Senate seats

• Taylor Rehmet secures Texas Senate District 9 race. State Rep. David Cook to represent District 22

Tarrant County’s U.S. House seats

• Republicans take lead in 4 out of 5 US House races unofficial voting results show

Tarrant Appraisal District board

• Hardy, Sharma, Adams maintain leads in Tarrant Appraisal District races

Tarrant County school boards and bonds

• Voters appear to reject Keller ISD’s $828M bond, Eagle Mountain-Saginaw tax rate bump

Reporter Dang Le contributed reporting.

Cecilia Lenzen is a government accountability reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact her at [email protected]. 

At the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here.