““Democrats win statewide in Texas for the first time since 1994.” — CNN, midterm takeaways by Eric Bradner, Patrick Svitek and Kevin Liptak, Nov. 4, 2026”
The claim: ““Democrats win statewide in Texas for the first time since 1994.” — CNN, midterm takeaways by Eric Bradner, Patrick Svitek and Kevin Liptak, Nov. 4, 2026”
Why we rated it this way: The Secretary of State's official 1994 canvass shows Democrats winning lieutenant governor (Bob Bullock, 61.48%), attorney general (Dan Morales, 53.70%), comptroller (John Sharp, 55.48%), state treasurer (Martha Whitehead, 50.30%) and land commissioner (Garry Mauro, 50.19%), even as Ann Richards lost the governor's race. That fits CNN's line that 1994 was the last year Democrats won statewide before Gina Hinojosa and James Talarico won on Nov. 3, 2026.
See the evidenceWhat would change our rating: An official Texas canvass showing a Democrat winning any statewide race, including a statewide judicial seat, between 1995 and 2025 would move this to contradicted.
Our read
The Secretary of State's official 1994 canvass shows Democrats winning lieutenant governor (Bob Bullock, 61.48%), attorney general (Dan Morales, 53.70%), comptroller (John Sharp, 55.48%), state treasurer (Martha Whitehead, 50.30%) and land commissioner (Garry Mauro, 50.19%), even as Ann Richards lost the governor's race. That fits CNN's line that 1994 was the last year Democrats won statewide before Gina Hinojosa and James Talarico won on Nov. 3, 2026.
Broadcast
Picture to come
Nov 4, 2026, 5:40 PM CST
Sources
Script
Narration script. If a face or a voice delivers this, the anchor is synthetic.
Evening Check. CNN says Democrats won statewide in Texas for the first time since 1994. The state's official 1994 results show Democrats won five statewide offices that year, including lieutenant governor and attorney general. Verdict: matches record.
Corrections
None on file.