Texas Democrats’ hope of a blue Texas was snuffed out Wednesday evening as top-of-the-ballot Democrats failed to flip the state in their favor.
Coming off of Beto O’Rourke’s narrow loss to Ted Cruz in 2018, Democrats had hoped Mary “MJ” Hegar could unseat incumbent Senator John Cornyn in the U.S. Senate race.
Cornyn, 68, was first elected to the U.S. Senate in 2002 and will enter his fourth term with almost 54 percent of all votes against Hegar.

John Cornyn, REP: 5,928,530 (53.6%)
Mary “MJ” Hegar, DEM: 4,833,394 (43.7%)

Cornyn had a strong turnout in Brazos County after a late campaign visit to the Bush Library on Oct. 29. He secured 58.67 percent of Brazos County’s votes and held Hegar to 38 percent.
Hegar conceded the race to Cornyn Tuesday shortly before 9 p.m. in a Twitter post.
Hegar, a 44-year-old Air Force veteran and mother of two, overcame a tough primary challenge against a large Democratic field of 10 candidates to make it to the Nov. 3 general election.
In a virtual speech, Cornyn declared victory over Hegar and fielded questions from reporters via Zoom.
“I’m so happy to share this moment with my wife Sandy, who has been by my side since I ran for District Judge in San Antonio a long time ago,” Cornyn said. “I want to thank every Texan across our great state who cast their ballot; this is a historic election for so many reasons. Whether I earned your vote, or whether you were pulling for my opponent, I’m honored and committed to serving and representing all Texans.”
When asked by a reporter how important it was for him to create a brand that was separate from President Donald Trump’s, Cornyn praised the work he and the president have done together.
“While people are focused on the different personalities, I’m proud to work with this president,” Cornyn said. “When I disagree with him, as you’ve heard, I prefer to do that in private. He’s accessible, he listens and I have been able to move the needle with him and sometimes get him to see things my way.”
In closing out his interview, Cornyn said reaching across the aisle to work with Democrats is something that must be done to solve difficult issues.
“I get the greatest satisfaction in solving problems that other people have not yet been able to solve,” Cornyn said. “The only way to do that is true bipartisan effort. It takes time and it takes trust — something that has been in short supply in Washington D.C.
“I am a proud conservative, a proud Texas conservative. I will work with anybody who is willing to join arms with me and join causes with me to be able to make some progress where progress is possible.”