Texas Senate Election Results: Talarico Wins, AP Calls Race — Nov. 4, 2026

Last checked: November 4, 2026, 7:08 AM Central Standard Time (CST, UTC-06:00; 13:08 UTC). This timestamp is the article's source-check time, not the election's closing time or a final certification date.

Democrat James Talarico has won Texas's November 3, 2026, U.S. Senate election, according to a race call by The Associated Press. Talarico defeated Republican Ken Paxton in the contest for the seat held by outgoing Republican Sen. John Cornyn. AP called the contest at 11:03 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (EST, UTC-05:00) on November 3, equivalent to 10:03 p.m. Central Standard Time (CST, UTC-06:00) in most of Texas and 04:03 UTC on November 4. A race call is an authoritative news determination, not the state's legal certification.

The Texas Secretary of State's election-results website also showed Talarico ahead in its November 3 general-election snapshot, but the displayed vote count was still incomplete. Readers searching for whether Talarico won should distinguish three things: who leads in reported ballots, whether a news organization has called the race, and whether Texas has finalized the official results.

Destaques

• Race called: The Associated Press declared James Talarico the winner over Ken Paxton in the 2026 Texas U.S. Senate race.
• Official count: The state election-results page reported 4,546,036 votes for Talarico and 3,567,899 for Paxton in its November 3, 11:40 p.m. CST snapshot; those are not certified totals.
• Where to check: Compare the Texas Secretary of State's November general-election returns with the AP's Texas Senate race-call report.
• What's next: Updated ballot totals and the official canvass can follow the election-night call; do not mistake a reporting percentage for the share of ballots counted.

Did James Talarico win the Texas Senate election?

Yes. The Associated Press called the U.S. Senate race for James Talarico on election night. Its November 3 report identified Paxton, Texas's attorney general and the Republican nominee, as the defeated candidate. Talarico was the Democratic nominee. The contest concerned a U.S. Senate seat, not a seat in the Texas Senate, the separate state legislative chamber.

That distinction matters when searching for "Texas Senate results." A statewide U.S. Senate result covers voters across Texas, while individual Texas State Senate districts have separate candidates, tallies, and outcomes. On the state's results page, look for the row labeled U. S. SENATOR, rather than a numbered STATE SENATOR district.

What do the Texas U.S. Senate election results show?

The following figures are a dated election-night snapshot from the Texas Secretary of State's November 3, 2026 general-election results display. The page identified its update as November 3 at 11:40 p.m. CST (UTC-06:00), equivalent to November 4 at 05:40 UTC, and indicated that 47% of polling locations were reporting for the U.S. Senate contest at that point.

Additional write-in candidates were listed by the state. These numbers must not be presented as the final result or as the exact figures available at every later visit. The reported share of polling locations measures locations reporting, not necessarily the percentage of all ballots already counted. Early ballots, different-sized jurisdictions, and later reports can affect how totals move. A source may show a newer timestamp or a different total by the time a reader opens it.

How do you check the official Texas election results?

Start at the Texas Secretary of State's election-results portal. Verify that the heading identifies the November 3, 2026 general election, rather than an earlier primary or runoff. Find the U. S. SENATOR contest, and read the posted update time, candidate vote counts, and reporting note together. If the page has refreshed since the snapshot above, its newer figures should take priority over these historical numbers.

For a separate confirmation of race-call status, check the Associated Press report announcing Talarico's win. The state feed is the source for election returns; AP is the source for its own independent winner determination. If the two sites display different timestamps, that does not automatically mean they disagree about who won.

When was the Texas Senate race called, and what does a race call mean?

AP declared Talarico the winner at 10:03 p.m. CST (UTC-06:00) on Tuesday, November 3, 2026, which was 11:03 p.m. EST (UTC-05:00) and 04:03 UTC on Wednesday, November 4. Western parts of Texas, including El Paso, were on Mountain Standard Time (MST, UTC-07:00) that day; the same moment there was 9:03 p.m. MST. Daylight saving time had ended before Election Day, so the November standard-time offsets are important.

AP explains in its official race-calling methodology that a race is called when its election analysts conclude the trailing candidate no longer has a path to victory based on available evidence and outstanding votes. The organization does not simply declare a winner because one candidate leads an early count or because a campaign says it won. That judgment can precede completion of the tally.

Why does Talarico's Texas victory matter?

Talarico's win gives Democrats a Texas U.S. Senate victory for the first time since 1988, ending a decades-long run of Republican wins for that office in the state. Paxton entered the general election after defeating incumbent Republican Sen. John Cornyn in the party's primary runoff. The result therefore changes which party will hold this particular seat once the new senator takes office.

It is also significant beyond one state because U.S. Senate seats help determine the chamber's partisan balance. One Texas race alone does not establish control of the entire Senate: that depends on results in other states and the full composition of the chamber. Claims about a national majority should be checked against the complete Senate results rather than inferred from Texas alone.

What happens after the Texas election-night results?

Election administrators continue the official counting, canvassing, and certification process after election night. Published totals can change as outstanding ballots and corrections are incorporated. The news organizations' calls and the state's legal certification serve different purposes: one informs readers about the determined winner, while the other formally establishes the election returns under state procedures.

As of this article's source check, the sources cited here verify AP's call for Talarico and the state's dated, incomplete election-night figures; they do not provide a final certified statewide tally. The clearest way to follow developments is to revisit the Texas Secretary of State's general-election results, note each page's own update time, and watch for an explicit certification notice rather than treating an earlier reporting snapshot as final.

FAQ: Texas Senate election results 2026

Has the Texas U.S. Senate race been called?

Yes. The Associated Press called the November 3, 2026, race for Democrat James Talarico over Republican Ken Paxton.

Are the Texas Senate vote totals final?

No final certified statewide tally was verified in the sources used for this article. The numbers quoted above come from a specifically dated Texas Secretary of State election-night snapshot, not a certified canvass.

Where can I see newer Texas Senate election results?

Visit the Texas Secretary of State's official election results, select or verify the November 3, 2026 general election, and check the U. S. SENATOR row and its posted update time.