Texas Democrats wrapped up their state convention in Corpus Christi on Saturday with a closing address from U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, who urged the party faithful to keep pressure on national politics while local candidates made the case for winning state offices Republicans have held for more than three decades.
Why It Matters
Texas Democrats have not won a statewide election in 32 years. With a full slate of candidates now in place — including nominees for governor, U.S. Senate, lieutenant governor, and attorney general — the party is trying to convince voters, donors, and itself that 2026 could break the streak. The gathering in Corpus Christi served as a launching pad for that effort, even as Republicans made preemptive moves to frame the convention’s star speaker as a liability.
What Happened
Sanders closed the multi-day Corpus Christi convention with a speech centered on taxing the ultrawealthy, limiting money in politics, and holding the Trump administration accountable. “You are building a strong grassroots movement,” Sanders told the crowd. “And you are winning.”
Gov. Greg Abbott’s campaign had already anticipated the moment, purchasing billboard space along the highway into Corpus Christi. The signs displayed Democratic U.S. Senate nominee James Talarico alongside Sanders under the caption “You want socialism? Good luck with that.” Abbott had said two weeks earlier that the choice of Sanders as keynote speaker “sums up today’s Democrats more than anything else.”
Talarico, an Austin lawmaker, faces Attorney General Ken Paxton in the general election. Gubernatorial nominee Rep. Gina Hinojosa used her remarks to critique the influence of big money across both parties. “We’ve lost our way because of a corrupt political system where corporate actors and lobbyists have unlimited money to influence politicians — in both parties,” she said.
Rep. Vikki Goodwin of Austin is the Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor, and state Sen. Nathan Johnson of Dallas is running for attorney general. Rep. Jon Rosenthal of Houston is seeking a seat on the Railroad Commission, where he would face Bo French, a former Tarrant County Republican Party chair.
The convention also drew attention to down-ballot races. Julio Salinas, a 26-year-old former legislative staffer, is running for Texas House District 41 in the Rio Grande Valley — a four-county border region — and received Sanders’ endorsement during the primary. Salinas argued that Sanders’ economic agenda would address needs his community has faced for a decade.
By the Numbers
32 years — the length of Democrats’ statewide losing streak in Texas, dating to the early 1990s.
55% — the share of Latino voters in Texas who backed President Trump in 2024, a significant shift that complicates Democratic assumptions about the Rio Grande Valley and other heavily Hispanic areas.
$6 million — a single campaign contribution from investor Jeff Yass to Abbott’s campaign in 2024, described by Abbott’s team as the largest individual donation in Texas political history.
$3 million — contributions to Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick that Democrats highlighted during the convention, tying Republican incumbents to major donor networks.
26 — Salinas’ age, representing the kind of young, local candidate Democrats are hoping can rebuild the party’s bench in competitive districts.
Zoom Out
The Texas convention reflects a broader tension inside the national Democratic Party over whether economic populism associated with Sanders can expand the coalition or further alienate working-class voters who have trended Republican. Democrats in other Sun Belt states face similar questions after 2024 results showed erosion among Latino and working-class voters in areas once considered safe.
The private school voucher program Texas Republicans passed last year has also become a Democratic talking point, with candidates arguing that wealthy donors — including West Texas oil billionaire Tim Dunn — have used their financial influence to reshape state education policy over public objection. For more on how big-money dynamics are reshaping Texas Republican politics from within, see how closed primaries could affect Texas Republicans’ majority standing.
What’s Next
With nominees in place across major statewide offices, Texas Democrats will now shift from convention mode to general election campaigning. The Corpus Christi gathering was intended to project unity heading into a cycle the party hopes — as it has before — will finally turn the page on three decades of statewide losses. Whether Sanders’ populist message broadens or narrows that path will be one of the defining questions of the fall campaign.