Taylor Rehmet vs Leigh Wambsganss: Election Day guide to Tarrant Senate runoff
Voters will know Saturday whether a Republican North Texas Senate seat has flipped in favor of Democrats.
The race between Democrat Taylor Rehmet and Republican Leigh Wambsganss has gained national attention, after Rehmet won nearly 48% of votes in a November special election for Senate District 9. The candidates hope to finish the remainder of Kelly Hancock’s term, after he left the Capitol to lead the Texas Comptroller’s Office.
Keller and Southlake, as well as part of Fort Worth, form the backdrop of the closely watched race, which has brought in big donations and brought up lingering debates over the intermixing of politics and education.
Remet, a union leader, has centered his campaign on the working person as he tries to usher in new leadership. Wambsganss, a Republican activist who works for a politically-influential cell phone company that has a conservative PAC, has highlighted her grassroots background and support from Republican heavy-hitters like President Donald Trump.
The election’s timing is unusual and may have arrived unnoticed for some voters. Still, despite the January date and icy weather, nearly 44,000 voters made it to the polls to cast ballots early between Jan. 21 and Jan. 27 – about 7% of the district’s registered voters.
Election Day is Saturday.
Chilly weather is in the forecast, but the election’s outcome isn’t as easily predicted.
Here’s what to know as you head out to vote.
How we got here: Election Day in Senate District 9
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott set a Nov. 3 special election for the District 9 seat after Hancock resigned from the Legislature, where he’d served in the Senate since 2013. He currently serves as acting comptroller and is running in the March Republican primary to represent the statewide office for a full term.
Rehmet, Wambsganss and former Southlake Mayor John Huffman, a Republican seen as the more moderate GOP pick, faced off in a three-way election. Rehmet and Wambsganss advanced to a runoff, after neither candidate won more than 50% of votes.
Rehmet largely flew under the radar in the first round of the race, as political spars between Wambsgass and Huffman and billionaire donations dominated the cycle.
The race heading into a runoff wasn’t a shock, but some were surprised that Rehmet advanced as the top vote getter in the historically Republican district that Trump won in 2024 with 58% of votes.
Rehmet pulled off an upset, leading Wambsganss by nearly 12 percentage points. His victory fell on the same night as wins from Democrats like Zohran Mamdani for New York Mayor and moderate democrats running for governor in Virginia and New Jersey.
The elections were widely viewed as a referendum on Trump’s first term thus far, and in North Texas, the win has energized voters on both sides of the aisle.
Democrats want to push Rehmet over the edge on Saturday, flipping the district blue. Republicans are warning voters not to take the district for granted, as they urge their supporters to get to the polls.
“Radical Democrats are trying to flip this seat in a low-turnout election,” Hancock said in a Jan. 21 social media post. “This is the first domino in their plan to turn Texas blue.”
Meet the Senate District 9 candidates: Taylor Rehmet and Leigh Wambsganss
Taylor Rehmet, Democrat
Taylor Rehmet, 33, lives in Fort Worth and works as an aircraft mechanic. He’s also a U.S. Air Force veteran and the president of the state and local chapters of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers union.
Rehmet has largely focused on kitchen table issues, like access to well paying jobs and affordability. He’s also expressed an interest in working across party lines, receiving the endorsement of former Republican Tarrant County Judge Glen Whitely.
National attention is on the race, as Democrats work to flip the seat.
The Democratic National Committee has worked to help recruit volunteers and sent out texts hoping to reach voters in the campaign’s final stretch.
“Rehmet is running against a far-right Republican activist who is more interested in scamming Texans than fighting for the people,” DNC Deputy Communications Director Abhi Rahman said in a Jan. 22 statement. “Democrats are building infrastructure in Texas, and the January 31 special election is a crucial test to keep Fort Worth moving forward.”
Rehmet highlighted a New York Times write up about the election in a Thursday social media post. He said “voters are fed up with extremist agendas that prioritize culture wars” over doing what’s best for Texans.
“On Saturday, we will flip this seat and get to work fighting for the issues that actually matter to YOU!,” Rehmet said in the post.
His campaign priorities include “getting serious about affordability,” to address issues like rising property taxes, increasing rent and higher home, insurance and grocery costs, according to his latest Star-Telegram candidate questionnaire.
Rehmet also said he is prioritizing fully funding public schools and teacher pay, as well as championing the “dignity of work” through “policies that ensure every Texan can earn a living wage, support their family, and retire with security.”
Rehmet has received more campaign contributions, but Wambsganss has raised more money in the Senate District 9 election.
Rehmet reports raising more than $540,000 since Oct. 26, including more about more than $243,000 in campaign services like advertising and voter turnout efforts from the Texas Majority PAC, which works to elect Democrats to statewide office. Rehmet has spent about $177,000, according to Texas Ethics Commission records.
The Texas Majority PAC donations were criticized by Wambsganss Friday on social media because Billionaire George Soros is a key donor.
Leigh Wambsganss, Republican
Wambsganss, 58, is a conservative activist from Southlake who has spent decades involved in Republican politics and works as the chief communications officer for Grapevine-based Patriot Mobile, which describes itself as “America’s only Christian conservative wireless provider.”
She previously served as executive director of the business’ political action committee, but left the post to run for Senate District 9. The group is known for supporting conservative candidates in suburban school board races, with varied success in recent years.
Wambsganss proudly boasts her MAGA credentials and Trump’s endorsement of her bid. She also has prominent Republicans like U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, Tarrant County Judge Tim O’Hare and Gov. Abbott behind her as she works to keep the North Texas seat under GOP control.
She also has the support of groups like True Texas Project, which started as the NE Tarrant Tea Party, and the Texans United for a Conservative Majority PAC, which is largely funded by West Texas Oilman Tim Dunn. The political action committee has donated $150,000 to Wambsganss in the runoff, according to Texas Ethics Commission records.
Wambsganss has appeared on former White House strategist Steve Bannon’s show, War Room, again demonstrating national attention on the local race.
The district is “strongly conservative” and deserves a leader who shares those values, Wambsganss said in her Star-Telegram candidate questionnaire.
“I am a battle-tested conservative who has gotten results for years,” Wambsganss said. “I believe the voters will see that my experience, qualifications, and credentials make me the best suited to serve SD9.”
Her top priorities include “meaningful property tax relief,” saying in her questionnaire that she supports a significant homestead exemption increase and cutting “unnecessary spending and government waste that prolongs our reliance on property taxes.”
Wambsganss said she’d prioritize every child’s right to a good education and teachers’ right to a fair wage, advocating for fully funded education and parental empowerment for parents to do what’s best for their child.
She also expressed support for bail reform so that “repeat violent offenders are not allowed back into our communities to victimize innocent citizens.”
Wambsganss reported more than $1 million in contributions since Oct. 26 and has spent about as much. Her top donors since that time have included the Texans for Lawsuit Reform PAC ($350,000) and the Texas Senate Leadership Fund (about $390,000), which was started by Patrick to “advance the goals of the conservative majority in the Texas Senate.”
Where is Texas Senate District 9?
Senate District 9 is one of Texas’ 31 Senate districts, five of which are in Tarrant County. There are 18 Republicans and 11 Democrats in the Senate, and two open seats: District 9 and District 4, which stretches from north Houston to the coast.
Senate District 9 spans most of northern and western Tarrant County. Cities in the district include Blue Mound, Haltom City, Haslet, Hurt, Keller, Lake Worth and Lakeside, North Richland Hills, Pelican Bay, Richland Hills, River Oaks, Saginaw, Sansom Park, Watauga, Westlake, Westover Hills, Westworth Village, White Settlement and most of Southlake.
Portions of Arlington, Azle, Bedford, Benbrook, Briar, Euless, Fort Worth, Pecan Acres and Trophy Club, as well as a tiny portion of Colleyville also fall within the district’s boundaries.
Senate District 9 Election Day weather forecast
Frigid temperatures are expected to continue through Saturday, before warming up later in the week, making for a chilly Election Day.
Rain isn’t expected until next week, but a Cold Weather Advisory is in effect for North Texas from midnight Friday through 11 a.m. Saturday, with wind chills from 0 to 9 degrees, according to the National Weather Service.
The forecast predicts that most of Dallas-Fort Worth won’t see temperatures rise above near or below freezing levels, with lows Saturday night in the upper teens and lower 20s.
Voters should remain aware of possible ice on roads and stay safe as they head out to the polls.
Tarrant County Election Administration hasn’t announced any weather-related poll closures on Saturday.
Where to vote on Election Day in Senate District 9 runoff
Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Senate District 9 voters can participate in the Saturday runoff election even if they didn’t vote in November.
Voters can go to any vote center in the county to cast their ballots. A full list of polling locations is available on the county’s election website.
Voters can also use an interactive map to find the nearest polling place and wait times.
If you live in Grand Prairie, keep in mind that there’s also a Saturday election for a vacant city council seat.
What’s next for Texas Senate District 9 after Election Day?
Rehmet and Wambsganss have been on the campaign trail for about 7 months, but Saturday’s outcome just marks the end of the start.
Both candidates are running in the Nov. 3 general election for a full four-year term. The winner of the runoff election will have a bit of a head start, but a Saturday victory isn’t a guarantee of the same outcome later this year.
The Texas Legislature isn’t scheduled to meet until January 2027, which means whoever wins will be serving in the interim between sessions, a slower period for state lawmakers that largely consists of tasks like constituent relations and overseeing interim hearings to study up before the session starts.
Wambsganss said she plans to use that time to begin her work in Austin, engage in the interim process and prepare for the 2026 legislative session.
“The early start will enable me to open an office, hire staff, and listen to constituents and stakeholders to have proposed legislation ready to file before the end of the year,” Wambsganss said in her Star-Telegram candidate questionnaire.
The work of an elected official should never stop, even if lawmakers aren’t in session, Rehmet said in his questionnaire.
“I’ll spend that time in the district, not in Austin, listening, holding town halls, visiting worksites, small businesses, schools, and hospitals and meeting directly with the people who live the successes and consequences of state policy every day,” he said.
Rehmet added that he’ll help constituents navigate state agencies, work to build bipartisan relationships, “study the issues that matter most to working families” and draft legislation that’s ready to file in 2027.
This story was originally published January 30, 2026 at 1:24 PM.
