The Texas special elections held last May 1 to fill the vacant seat left by the late Representative Ron Wright who died after contracting COVID in February has proven to be a "blow to Democrats" as only Republicans qualified for a runoff in the bellwether district.
WND reported that the special elections turned out to be a "rebuke to the Biden Administration" since two Republicans--the widow of Ron Wright, Susan, and Jake Elizey--finished first and second. They were followed by Democrat Jana Lynne Sanchez who eventually conceded.
WND cited a tweet by Fox News Contributor Tammy Bruce warning the Democrats to be ready for the midterm elections in 2022 as the special Texas elections's results be a precedent to it.
"Dems should prepare for a SHELLACKING in 2022. 'Democrats aiming to flip Texas House seat fall short as 2 Republicans qualify for runoff'," Bruce said in Twitter on May 3.
Dems should prepare for a SHELLACKING in 2022... "Democrats aiming to flip Texas House seat fall short as 2 Republicans qualify for runoff" https://t.co/j5Sga30LPI
"” Tammy Bruce (@HeyTammyBruce) May 2, 2021
The results of the runoff will reduce the hold of the Democratic Party in the U.S. House of Representatives, which is now divided into 212 Republicans and 218 Democrats, WND noted. This means that the Democrats can still pass legislation amidst losing only one or two votes from its membership.
The results of midterm elections often show that whoever holds the White House ends up losing in the House of Representatives. Thus, this means Democrats are to face that fate considering they currently hold the White House.
BallotPedia revealed that Wright's widow received a vote of 19.2% while Ellzey got 13.8%. Sanchez, the only Democrat, got a close vote of 13.4% at third, falling by 354 votes based on unofficial results. A fourth placer, Brian Harrison, at 10.8% is also a Republican.
BallotPedia explained that the "seat will not change party hands as a result of this election" because both candidates in the runoffs are Republicans. Wright was actually endorsed by former President Donald Trump for the post last April 26.
In addition, WND also cited National Review National Affairs Columnist John Fund who questioned the actuality of President Joe Biden's popularity based on the special election's results that show otherwise.
"If Biden Is So Popular, Why This? Republicans grabbed the two runoff slots in the Texas 6 special election yesterday. Dems were shut out, their candidates won a total 36% in a Dallas area seat that Trump carried by only 3 points last November," Fund said on May 2.
Meanwhile, the Texas Election Source said that a perspective in looking at Sanchez' vote deficit would be of three things. One, that the "three lowest placing Democrats collectively received 625 votes." Two, that "six other Democrats received at least 1,000 votes." Three, "Sanchez received just 36% of the votes cast for Democrats."
Fox News cited in its report on the matter that Biden's job performance received a 54% majority vote in a poll they conducted. This result, Fox News pointed out, was lower than former President George Bush's 63% approval and former President Barrack Obama's 62%. Trump's performance was approved by 45% of voters four years ago
Despite losing in the runoffs, Fox News said Democrats praised Sanchez and were persistent on their sights for the district. Fox News cited a statement by Texas Democratic Party Chair Gilberto Hinojosa that said the results showed a clear indicator that "Texas is moving closer and closer to turning blue with every year that passes".
"The new Democratic South is rising, and we will continue to rally our movement to take back our state--including as we look toward the 2022 governor's race," Hinojosa said.
In the statement, Hinojosa also pointed out that the special elections result show "voters are invested in electing Democrats" eventhough the party is "not advancing to the runoff". He stressed that they are ready to "take back" the state and "defeat" the Republicans.
