The mainstream media’s “blue wave” narrative might need some work in Texas.
Despite not running in a competitive primary, Sen. Ted Cruz got more votes in his primary than all of his Democratic opponents combined did in theirs.
Overall, 1,543,674 Republicans voted for Senate in the Texas primary, while just 1,037,779 voted in the Democratic primary—despite that primary being far more competitive.
While Texas is a reliably Republican state, the lopsided vote totals come as a surprise—after weeks of Democrats touting their efforts to turn the state blue. Over the last three quarters, Cruz’s top Democratic challenger Rep. Beto O’Rourke outraised the incumbent Senator by millions of dollars—and early voting showed Democrats demolishing Republicans.
But, at the end of the day, Cruz won 1,317,450 votes, about 85% of the Republican primary vote. In November, he’ll face O’Rourke—who won just 641,324 votes, out of a substantially smaller Democratic primary.
