You’ve probably heard the "Texas is turning blue" narrative for about a decade now. It’s been the drumbeat of every national political talk show since 2016. But honestly, if you look at the texas voting results 2024, that story didn't just hit a speed bump—it basically drove off a cliff.
Texas didn't just stay red. It got redder. In a way that has left a lot of political consultants in DC scratching their heads and looking at spreadsheets with a bit of genuine panic.
The red wall didn't just hold—it moved
The most shocking thing about the 2024 cycle wasn't that Donald Trump won the state. We all expected that. It was the margin. Trump cleared Kamala Harris by about 13.7 percentage points. To put that in perspective, back in 2020, he only won the state by 5.6 points.
That is a massive swing.
People kept talking about the "Texas Triangle"—that area between Dallas, Houston, and Austin—as the place where Democrats would finally plant their flag. And while the big cities stayed blue, the "blue ripples" we saw in the suburbs four years ago kind of evaporated. Places like Tarrant County (Fort Worth), which Joe Biden actually won in 2020, flipped back to the Republican column.
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South Texas and the "Starr" of the show
If you want to understand why the texas voting results 2024 look the way they do, you have to look at the Rio Grande Valley. This is the stuff of political legend now. Starr County, which is roughly 97% Latino, voted for a Republican for the first time since 1892.
1892.
That’s not a typo. We’re talking about a county that has been a Democratic stronghold since Benjamin Harrison was in the White House. It wasn't just Starr, either. Cameron, Hidalgo, and Webb counties—traditionally deep blue areas along the border—either flipped red or saw double-digit shifts toward the GOP.
Why? It’s complicated, but it mostly boils down to three things:
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- The Economy: Voters in these areas felt the sting of inflation and felt the current administration's policies weren't helping the working class.
- Border Security: Living at the epicenter of the border crisis, many residents felt abandoned and wanted a firmer hand on immigration.
- Cultural Alignment: There’s a growing sense that the national Democratic platform doesn't align with the socially conservative values of many South Texas families.
Ted Cruz and the "expensive" survival
Then there’s the Senate race. Ted Cruz vs. Colin Allred was supposed to be the "one." Democrats poured over $100 million into Allred’s campaign, hoping to replicate the energy of the Beto O'Rourke run from 2018.
It didn't happen.
Cruz won by about 8.5 points. While it was closer than the presidential margin, it was still a comfortable victory. Allred did well in the urban centers—winning Bexar County (San Antonio) by 16 points, for example—but he just couldn't make up for the absolute shellacking he took in rural Texas.
The strategy for Democrats has always been: "Run up the numbers in the cities and hope the rural areas don't notice." But in 2024, the rural areas noticed. And they turned out in droves. Even with record-high registration numbers in Texas (over 18.6 million people), the actual turnout percentage dropped compared to 2020. People in the big blue cities just didn't show up with the same intensity, while the GOP base was fired up.
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Down-ballot drama you might have missed
While everyone was focused on the top of the ticket, some interesting stuff happened further down the ballot:
- Texas Supreme Court: Despite a massive push by groups focusing on reproductive rights, all three Republican incumbents on the state's highest civil court kept their seats.
- The Border Shift: Republicans didn't just win the presidency in the Valley; they flipped two state House seats in border districts that had been Democratic for generations.
- The "Paxton Revenge" Primary: Earlier in the year, Attorney General Ken Paxton went on a warpath against Republican judges who ruled against him. Most of those "rebel" judges lost their primaries, meaning the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals shifted even further to the right.
What this means for 2026 and beyond
So, is Texas still a "battleground" state? Honestly, probably not for a while. The 2024 results suggest that the demographic shift Democrats were counting on—more Latino voters and more urban professionals—isn't a guaranteed win for them. In fact, Trump won a majority of both Asian and Latino voters in Texas this time around. That’s a "first-ever" kind of statistic for a Republican.
If you’re looking for actionable insights from these results, here’s the reality:
- Don't trust the "Demographics is Destiny" trope. Just because a state is getting more diverse doesn't mean it's getting more liberal. The 2024 data shows that Latino voters in Texas are increasingly voting based on economic and security issues, not identity politics.
- Watch the suburbs, not just the cities. The real battle for Texas is fought in the "collar counties"—places like Collin, Denton, and Williamson. If Republicans keep holding these areas by double digits, the state stays red.
- Turnout is king. Democrats registered more voters than ever, but they couldn't get them to the polls. Until they solve their "enthusiasm gap" in Houston and Dallas, they're going to keep hitting this wall.
The bottom line is that Texas is a unique beast. It’s a state that values independence and a "hands-off" government approach, and for now, the Republican message is the one that’s resonating from the Panhandle down to the Gulf Coast.
Actionable Next Steps:
- Check your voter registration status: Even though the big one is over, local elections in Texas happen frequently. You can verify your status at the Texas Secretary of State website.
- Review local council and school board results: Often, the most immediate impact on your life comes from the local races that get buried under the presidential headlines.
- Analyze the precinct-level data: If you really want to geek out, most county election websites (like Harris or Dallas County) offer "precinct maps" that show exactly how your specific neighborhood voted. It’s often surprising to see how your own street differs from the rest of the city.