‘We Just Took Back Texas’: Watching the Blue Tsunami from Talarico’s Victory Party
In a thoroughly historic night of statewide electoral upsets, led by the Democratic Senate candidate, Texans rejoiced.
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Far From Abbott’s Promised ‘Dark Red,’ Harris County Drives Democrats to Victory Up and Down Ballot
Texas’ largest county cemented its status as a staunchly blue stronghold.
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Inundated by ICE and Rising Costs of Living, South Texas Returns Home to Democrats
After two years of being ground zero for the Trump administration’s nationalist policies, the region dramatically swung for Dems after flipping red in 2024.
News ⋆
Texans Decide that Bo French Was the ‘Problem’
The guy who said 100 million people in America should be deported was himself removed from contention for elected office, along, it seems, with the entire ticket around him.
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Controversial Ex-Judge Will Officially Be Dallas’ Top Prosecutor
A late write-in campaign failed to overcome the Democrat nominee, Amber Givens.
Reviews ⋆
Could Socialism Come to Texas?
A new book lays out a rigorous vision for creating a labor-first economy.
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Politics
Revealed: GOP Group Tied to Mysterious Trans Student Messages
A Travis County judge ordered that names be released, according to the Transgender Education Network of Texas. The GOP group denied involvement.
‘I’m Feeling Some Trepidation’: Will Talarico Pull Off a Generational Upset over Paxton?
It’s almost Election Day and Texas is once again on center stage. Here’s the view from the campaign trail in the nation’s most expensive, most highly anticipated 2026 contest.
Ken Paxton’s ‘October Surprises’ Are Pure Disinformation
For Paxton and the influencers around him, shoddy work in the election’s home stretch is getting rapidly exposed—though some mystery still surrounds a deceptive mail campaign.
Border and Immigration
What Will It Take to ‘Get ICE the Fuck Out of Austin’?
Shootings by federal agents are proliferating since Donald Trump took office in 2025, several of them in Texas. To stop it from happening again, local elected officials and prosecutors are hunting for options that aren’t already foreclosed.
Santa Ana’s Last Stand
Congress repeatedly shielded the Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge from the border wall. Now, construction has begun—and an irrigation district lawsuit may be the only option left to buy time for lawmakers to act.
ICE Contractor for Controversial Camp East Montana Is Trailed by Fraud Allegations
To continue running the deadly El Paso detention center, the feds turn to a company that’s faced numerous lawsuits from labor unions and former employees and is actively fighting a whistleblower in court.
Culture
‘Earth Has No Sorrow’: Visions of a Caldwell County Long Gone
The Observer resurfaces a 50-year-old collection of fine arts photography and unique oral history.
Houston’s ‘Living Archive’ of Migration
At Fresh Arts, photographer Violeta Álvarez created a space where immigrant families in Houston can see their own histories reflected back to them.
Houston’s Historic Black Theater at 50
For five decades, the Ensemble has brought Houstonians together to laugh, cry, and talk back to plays representing all aspects of African-American life.
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November/December 2026
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