Election Day Results

Being a photojournalist in Texas on this midterm Election Day 2026 felt more like being a storm chaser than anything else. This particular storm has been building stronger every year for the last decade and beyond. Today, the feeling at every community center and polling location I visited in our beloved Tarrant County had a strong and palpable energy that had me feeling like I was Bill Paxton in the original Twister, which is pretty dreamy for a kid from the 817.

Democrat Gina Hinojosa will be our new governor and James Talarico our new U.S. senator. Locally, former County Judge Tim O’Hare is out, and Democrat Alisa Simmons is in.

The places I chose to visit were among those highly affected by our local government’s unethical and race-driven voter suppression by way of gerrymandering, redistricting, and, most recently, a massive cut in election polling locations just ahead of the midterms. At the Southside Community Center at Hazel Harvey Peace Center, I was able to speak with an old friend and ally, Patrice Jones (Southside Community Gardens founder), who had started making her Election Day rounds in the Southside and Eastside communities at 7am. She was out organizing and working with By Any Means 104, a nonprofit that was distributing free water, snacks, and nonpartisan literature to oncoming voters.

“So many Black and brown people don’t believe their vote matters, and that could not be further from the truth,” Jones said. “If our votes did not matter, 92 polling locations would not have been closed down recently by Tarrant County officials led by [County] Judge Tim O’Hare.”

Allegedly, one of the major events that led to the closing of all those polling locations was a newly elected Democratic senator from District 9, a historically Republican seat, Taylor Rehmet, who was there in person at Southside Community Center, and I was able to meet with him and ask a few questions about the mood and overall feeling of the day.

“I think people are looking for change, and I’m not sure they care where it comes from,” he said. “They want something authentic, and I hope that’s what they get.”

I also spoke to fellow musician/activist/writer Ken Shimamoto about the energy shift within this storm we’ve been feeling.

“This year, we have seen young Latinos angered by ICE invading their communities turning out to vote in record numbers as well,” he said. “It takes a village, and when things are not adding up within our elected officials, it’s on us to remind them of who they serve and why the Constitution must be upheld at all costs.”