Texas Democrat James Talarico, the 37-year-old state lawmaker who shares his only disclosed checking account with his mother , defeated Republican attorney general Ken Paxton, breaking his party's long losing streak in the Lone Star State. Talarico led Paxton by a 20-point margin when the race was called at 11:15 p.m., flipping the seat held by Paxton's primary opponent, Republican incumbent John Cornyn, and marking the first time Texas elected a Democrat to the Senate since 1988.
The victory came eight years after a similarly high-profile Democratic Senate run in Texas fell short. In that race, Beto O'Rourke raised more than $80 million and became a national media darling while running against Ted Cruz. O'Rourke, however, embraced left-wing positions like an assault weapons ban in a bid to turn out Democratic voters rather than appeal to independents.
Talarico matched O'Rourke's fundraising prowess—his campaign raised at least $160 million —but took a different approach to strategy.