Sander\u2019s speech capped the three-day convention where democratic delegates, volunteers, and elected officials urged activists to organize for the 2026 elections. Candidates and party leaders argued that winning political power in the state is essential for protecting public education, expanding health care access and safeguarding rights they say are under attack \u2014 both in the Lone Star State and nationally.<\/p>\n
In Texas, Republicans have held every statewide elected office in Texas for more than three decades. Many of the state\u2019s Democrats feel like this year is their best chance yet <\/a>to retake at least some of those positions.<\/p>\n The convention in Corpus Christi included speeches from the state\u2019s most notable Democrats, Dolores Huerta, Congressman Al Green, and several who are running at the local, state, and federal level both in and out of state.<\/p>\n Texas Democratic Gubernatorial candidate Gina Hinojosa said this election season, \u201cis the only fight that matters in 2026.\u201d She said the results will answer a big question for Texans.\u201cIs this the Texas that is by and for the people? Or is this great state the billionaire’s world, and we just live here?\u201d asked Hinojosa before the crowd during a nearly six-hour rally on Friday evening.<\/p>\n National Democrats tie Texas to nationwide political battles<\/p>\n New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker, another convention keynote speaker, famed this year\u2019s midterms as a pivotal choice for voters when it comes to the country’s priorities.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is not about left or right anymore. It’s about right or wrong.\u201d Booker told the crowd of nearly 4,000 attendees. \u201cAre we a nation where healthcare is a right or does it drive us to bankruptcy? Or are we a nation that believes that the gateway to democracy begins with public education and equal opportunity? or are we closing it off by defunding our schools?\u201d<\/p>\n Other speakers built on that message, arguing that winning elections \u2014 and holding political power \u2014 is the first step toward achieving the party’s shared goals. Last year\u2019s Republican-led redistricting in Texas was a frequent example the Democrats pointed to.<\/p>\n Tennessee State Rep. Justin J. Pearson, a Memphis Democrat and member of the Tennessee Three<\/a>, knows that struggle firsthand. Pearson was expelled from the Tennessee House in 2023 before being reinstated and is now running for Congress. But Texas’ mid-decade redistricting fight helped spark similar fights in several states, including Tennessee. In May, Tennessee\u2019s Republican-dominated legislature redrew the state\u2019s congressional districts. The seat Pearson is running for now leans Republican.<\/p>\n \u201cThey cracked<\/a> our congressional district in Memphis into thirds to create three white majority districts,\u201d Pearson told attendees. \u201cThey thought that would make us quit. They thought wrong.\u201d<\/p>\n Pearson’s message resonated with many Texas Democrats, who spent much of the last year battling their own Republican-led redistricting effort.<\/p>\n Democratic gubernatorial nominee Gina Hinojosa and U.S. Senate nominee James Talarico were among the lawmakers who broke quorum in an unsuccessful attempt to stop Republicans from approving a new congressional map they argued diluted the voting powe<\/a>r of communities of color.<\/p>\n Although Republicans ultimately approved the map, Democrats repeatedly pointed to the fight as evidence that organizing \u2014 even in defeat \u2014can draw national attention and mobilize supporters.<\/p>\n Texas Democrats turn focus to policy fights at home<\/p>\n Hinojosa centered her Friday speech on public education, arguing Gov. Greg Abbott’s school voucher program has weakened Texas schools.<\/p>\n \u201cAbbott devastated our schools when he passed his voucher scam, and he took six million dollars from an out-of-state billionaire dead set on defunding public education,\u201d Hinojosa said. \u201cAs long as we have a governor who can be bought, we won’t have the Texas that we deserve.\u201d<\/p>\n Others who spoke highlighted the lack of access to healthcare for rural Texans, affordability issues, and the need for change in leadership for the Lone Star State.<\/p>\n The final speech Friday night came from Democratic U.S. Senate nominee James <\/p>\n Blaise Gainey<\/p>\n \/<\/p>\n The Texas Newsroom <\/p>\n Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate James Talarico speaks to a crowd at the Hilliard Center in Corpus Christi during the Texas Democratic Convention.<\/p>\n Talarico, who drew one of the convention’s loudest ovations. He used much of his time to highlight the long history of Texans resisting concentrated political power.<\/p>\n \u201cThat Texas state of mine resists any tyranny, whether it comes from dictators 200 years ago or billionaire mega donors today,\u201d Talarico said.<\/p>\n He told the crowd that what Democrats are now fighting for isn\u2019t just about Texas.<\/p>\n \u201cThere is something broken in America. Our economy is broken. Our political system is broken, even our relationships with each other feel broken,\u201d Talarico said. \u201cThere is a deep hunger in this state and in this country for a different kind of politics. Not a politics of hate, but a politics of love. A love that can heal what’s broken in America.\u201d<\/p>\n Republicans make their presence felt outside convention<\/p>\n While Democrats listened to speeches or attended training in the convention center, Texas Republicans staged their own events outside it throughout the weekend.<\/p>\n Trucks carrying mobile LED billboards<\/a> circled the arena, flashing Republican slogans and ads. GOP volunteers handed out free breakfast tacos wrapped in anti-Democrat messaging<\/a>, and two longhorns were staged nearby beneath a banner reading “Don’t Buy The Bull.”<\/a><\/p>\n Blaise Gainey<\/p>\n \/<\/p>\n The Texas Newsroom <\/p>\n Cattle handlers stand outside the Texas Democratic Convention with a bull wearing a towel that said, \u201cDon\u2019t Buy the Bull,\u201d as part of a campaign stunt sponsored by Gov. Greg Abbott’s campaign Radical Texas.<\/p>\n Most of the Democrat convention counterprogramming was organized by Radical Texans, a political group supporting Gov. Greg Abbott and other Texas Republican candidates. The governor actively posted about their activities on his social media.<\/p>\n![\"Democratic](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/1782676452_136_.jpeg\"\/)
<\/p>\n![\"Cattle](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/1782676452_135_.jpeg\"\/)
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