SCOTT SIMON, HOST:
Texas, the ordinarily reliably red Lone Star State, got hit by a blue asteroid in Tuesday's midterm elections. Democrats won the governor's mansion, the U.S. Senate race and a majority in the Texas House of Representatives. And perhaps nowhere was the political reversal more dramatic than along the Texas-Mexico border. Texas Public Radio's David Martin Davies joins us from San Antonio. David, thanks so much for being with us.
DAVID MARTIN DAVIES, BYLINE: Good morning, Scott.
SIMON: And just two years ago, President Trump made remarkable gains with Latino voters in South Texas. Now, same communities voted dramatically differently. What happened? What's going on?
DAVIES: Well, two years ago, Donald Trump - he won counties along the Texas-Mexico border that had been democratic strongholds for generations. Republicans thought they had won the political lottery. And when they tried to cash in by redrawing South Texas congressional districts, they thought it would help hold their majority in Congress, but that bet went bust. Take Starr County in the Rio Grande Valley. Trump won it with 58% of the vote in 2024. On Tuesday, Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico won it with about 77% of the vote.
SIMON: That is a huge swing. What have voters been saying?
DAVIES: Well, I'm hearing that voters are deeply frustrated. They voted for Trump because they wanted lower prices at the pump and at the grocery checkout, but those prices went way up. So did healthcare. And immigration enforcement matters, too. The big difference between supporting border security, which a lot of these folks do, and mass deportation is that it disrupts families, businesses and entire communities. Here's what a caller said Wednesday, the day after the election, on my daily call-and-talk show, The Source.
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SANDRA SANFORD: Hi, this is Sandra Sanford (ph). I wanted to let you know, as a voter, why I went from voting Republican over to the Democratic side this time. I was disappointed and almost angry of how our administration is handling immigration.
DAVIES: Now Democrats think they've got the winning ticket. But not so fast, buckaroo, Latino voters - they're not going to hitch their wagon to any political party. They're independent-minded voters who expect politicians to deliver real results.
SIMON: And Democrats have been trying to turn Texas their way for decades. Is what we're seeing a lasting political realignment?
DAVIES: Well, Scott, the political future of Texas isn't written in stone. It's written in grits, and in Texas, those grits are constantly getting stirred up. And for now, folks are trying to figure out what happens next. No one expected Democrats to run the table. For the first time in a generation, Democrats have an opportunity to move beyond just being the opposition party to actually govern Texas.
SIMON: And I gather one of the lesser-known developments is that Democrats may also take control of the Texas State Board of Education. And that's been a battleground in Texas for a few years now. What could change in Texas classrooms?
DAVIES: Scott, this could be one of the most consequential changes coming out of this election. For decades, the Texas State Board of Education has been a major battleground in the culture wars. This is the board that helps determine what millions of Texas schoolchildren are taught about American history, slavery, race, religion, evolution and climate science. Conservatives have used their majority to shape curriculum standards around their ideas about American history and Christian values, and the board had approved curriculum that critics say portrays Islam as a violent religion. Those changes will likely be reversed now that Democrats appear poised to take control of the board.
SIMON: David Martin Davies of Texas Public Radio. He's also host of The Source there. David, thanks so much.
DAVIES: Anytime, Scott. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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