GOP lost Texas seat because 'people are getting sick' of one MAGA priority: columnist

Republican Party representatives misread the Texas Senate election according to a political analysist who says one issue was an overstep from the party.

Democrat Taylor Rehmet would go on to defeat Republican Leigh Wambsganss in the special election for the Texas state senate position. It was a shock result considering Donald Trump had carried it by 17% in the 2024 election. But just two years later there has been a 31% swing away from the GOP to Democratic Party candidate Rehmet.

The reason for this may be a subtle one, according to Salon columnist Amanda Marcotte. She wrote, "There are strong signs that Rehmet won in no small part because suburban Fort Worth has long been on the frontline in the culture war over book banning.

"Wambsganss built her political career advocating for strict censorship in schools and libraries, and her loss signals that, even in this very conservative district, people are getting sick of the far-right telling them what they cannot read."

Librarians from the area where Rehmet won the election also considered the effects of Wambsganss' rhetoric over reading. Audrey Wilson-Youngblood said a "huge swath of pro-book banning candidates" were elected to the school board, and that those in the area were growing tired of their choices.

Wambsganss made no secret of her thoughts on arguing for certain books to be banned. In 2022, she said all books with LGBTQ+ characters should be banned because it is "normalizing a lifestyle that is a sexual choice".

Marcotte went on to suggest there are lessons here for the Democratic Party to take into account against their GOP opponents across the country.

She wrote, "Rehmet’s win shows that, at least in some places, MAGA’s threats to peace and freedom on the local level remain a pressing concern. A lot of voters want the culture war chaos to go away, especially when it comes to schools, so the kids can concentrate on learning.

"In many places, Democrats can win with a message of protecting the right of kids to learn in peace, instead of being the targets of a mind control project run by Bible-thumpers. If it worked in suburban Fort Worth, it’s a strategy that could rack up Democratic wins in other red districts."