Turnout in the Democratic primary outpaced that on the Republican side for the first time since 2020, a notable distinction given the draw of high-profile Senate primaries in both parties.
Nearly one in four registered voters in Texas cast a ballot in Tuesday’s primaries, a high-water mark for midterm elections in the state’s recent history, driven by electrifying momentum surrounding both parties’ races for U.S. Senate.
In all, nearly 4.5 million Texans voted across the Democratic and Republican primaries, according to unofficial numbers on the Texas Secretary of State’s Office as of 8 a.m. Thursday. The turnout was divided between 2.3 million ballots in the Democratic primary and nearly 2.2 million on the Republican side; it was the first time with higher Democratic turnout since 2020, when voters flocked to weigh in on the party’s open presidential primary.
The energy across both parties this year was clear from the start. In the first seven days of early voting, the state recorded more ballots cast than in any recent midterm or presidential election year. There are roughly 18.7 million registered voters in the state.
The higher turnout on the Democratic side, despite the draw of spicy contests at the top for both parties’ ballots, has helped fuel Democrats’ hopes that backlash to President Donald Trump’s policies could propel them to their first statewide win since 1994.
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Photo Credit: Voters stand in line at the Cody Branch Library polling location on primary election day in San Antonio on March 3, 2026. Christopher Lee for The Texas Tribune
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