Many in Lubbock County went to sleep Tuesday night not knowing the results of local ballot items, or how Lubbock County voters might shift the numbers in results for higher district, state, and federal races.
As of 3:30 a.m. Wednesday morning, Lubbock County Elections Office staff were still at work to solidify election results for the county.
Lubbock County saw more than 100,000 total ballots cast in the 2026 November election, a new record number for midterm turnout in a county where Republicans have historically taken around 70% of the vote in midterm elections.
Despite the uncertainty, several offices covering the West Texas region saw candidates leading in significant-enough numbers that candidates were confident enough to claim victory.
With the addition of Lubbock County results reported the following morning, State Senate District 28 incumbent West Texas Republican Senator Charles Perry had around 110,000 votes more than his Democratic opponent, Abilene-native Riley Rodriquez.
Perry is returning to a state capitol that looks very different. January would be the first time in Perry's nearly 17 years in the legislature with a Democratic governor and lieutenant governor leading the Senate.
While he doesn't believe the leadership change will slow things down, Perry said Republicans will have some "course adjustments" to think about.
"We still find a way to do big things for everybody that needs them," Perry said. "So I'm not discouraged about governing. I think we'll find that balance to govern, but it is a wake-up call, I think, for our party on a lot of levels."
The biggest party flips in the state were James Talarico taking Texas' U.S. Senate seat, as well as Gina Hinojosa and Vikki Goodwin succeeding as candidates for Governor and Lieutenant Governor, all three of them originally represented areas around Austin.
Perry said one of the things he's worried about with last night's shift bringing forward state leadership out of larger cities is what he called an "urbanized" legislature taking attention – and funding – away from rural Texas.
"It's a real competitive environment for funding for rural Texas," Perry explained. "And not to say it would be deliberate or nefarious. I think it's just common sense that you represent your district and try to make sure your district's covered. So I fear the competition for the funding of roads, healthcare, water, infrastructure; those things get a lot tighter and different looking than what it is today."
Despite his concerns over what the shakeups could mean for the state, Perry said his job of representing District 28 hasn't changed.
"I'm supposed to go govern for my district and for the state," he stated. "So nothing changed in that regard, and I have no reason to doubt that I won't have the liberty and freedom to continue to work on infrastructure, whether I have it officially or not. That's what I'm going to be working on."
That work will begin in very short order. Pre-filing of bills for the upcoming legislative session begins on Nov. 9. And in January, Texas lawmakers will convene for the state's 90th Legislative Session.
Meanwhile, on the federal level, Texas' U.S. Congressional District 19 is expected to continue Republican representation with newcomer Tom Sell. By Wednesday morning, Sell held a lead of just over 86,000 votes, according to data from the Texas Secretary of State.
While Democrats took control of the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate after last night's election, West Texas largely maintained its Red reputation.
District 19, covering parts of the Texas panhandle from north of Lubbock down to Abilene, has been represented by Jodey Arrington for ten years. Arrington did not run for reelection. The candidates to replace him were Democrat Kyle Rable and Republican Tom Sell.
Sell acknowledged that working in a majority Democratic Congress would be different than he anticipated, but he added the people of West Texas showed their support in this race for conservative leadership – and that he intends to carry the legacy of those who came before him.
"It's going to be a different kind of work over the next couple years, but I just couldn't be more honored to have that privilege. And look, I've been saying from the beginning of this campaign," Sell said, "we all need to count our blessings more and count our grievances less, and we are so blessed to live in this nation, where we can have peaceful transitions of power, where the people can have their voice and speak."
Sell said he is focused on the issues themselves, and has a history of working across the aisle to find solutions, while maintaining the principles that he said got him elected.
"I'm excited, even in this – what will certainly be a rebuilding phase for the Republican Party – to try and work, and my real hope is that this Democratic Congress focuses on legislating to address the needs of the American people," Sell said. "I really hope we don't just devolve into kind of a series of impeachment trials and things that just exacerbate the divide that we see."
Sell said he's interested in further unpacking the election results and that those like U.S. Senate and Texas Governor are opportunities to learn from the people.
"The American people are never kind of the wings that we see in Washington, D.C.," Sell said. "Largely, they're kind of this pragmatic middle that just wants our government to work, to function, so as to preserve these freedoms and these blessings that we know in the United States of America, and I believe we can do that. I certainly believe that we can do that in a meaningful way."
Sell said he would be looking forward to his congressional orientation and to starting to build relationships with other new, incoming representatives. Orientation for the newest members of Congress will begin later in November, but before those obligations begin, Sell said he would be visiting his son and grandchild.
Following the delays in reporting from Lubbock County Elections Office, its unofficial results were finally posted just after 7 a.m. on Wednesday.
Sell's opponent Kyle Rable said that while he might not have won his own race, seeing the strong statewide turnout for Democratic candidates amazed him.
"Seeing it last night, but then waking up and just realizing again what happened across the state, but even in West Texas, it's astronomical, and I'm just so very thankful for everything," Rable said.
The closest a Democrat candidate has come to winning in Texas' U.S. House District 19 was Charles Stenholm in the 2004 race against Republican incumbent Randy Neugebauer. Before, Stenholm had represented District 17 for more than 25 years, until a controversial redistricting put him in competition for one of the most conservative districts in Texas, and he still took around 40% of the vote.
"This is the best showing since Charlie Stenholm, for a Democrat, and I'm just thankful for the people that believed in this fight because really, what it meant was that we took all of Texas back because of our fight out here," Rable said. "I'm just so thankful for everyone that did everything and supported me, and I am very grateful for the fact that I get to wake up with a toddler and a newborn baby girl, and be a dad."
While he plans on taking a beat for himself and his family, he also intends to continue his collaboration with the incoming candidates with whom he's built relationships throughout his campaign and to keep advocating for the region.
"This was the start of an effort to make sure that West Texans know that we're here for them and that we're going to fight for them," Rable stressed. "This isn't over."
Rable said that support for West Texans is something that he and Tom Sell share. And that both candidates agreed the campaigns they ran kept the region and its people an active part of the conversation in this election.
"When I called Tom last night, we had a good conversation about, you know, we might not agree, but we both agree on putting West Texas and America first. And when you start with that conversation with your opponent, the conversation will always be, 'What do we do together to make sure we are remembered and we're put first in conversations?'" Rable said.
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