It's not often that a Republican win in Texas is considered an "upset," but such was the case in Senate District 19 Tuesday night. Pete Flores became the first Republican elected to serve the district in almost 150 years when he defeated Democrat Pete Gallego, a former congressman, in the special election runoff. HUGE GOP victory in Texas! Congratulations to Pete Flores – the first Hispanic Republican to serve in the state Senate & first Republican elected to Senate #District19 since 1874. #txlege — GOP (@GOP) September 19, 2018 Flores pulled off the victory against Gallego with 6 percentage points to spare. The two were competing to replace convicted former state Sen. Carlos Uresti (D-San Antonio), who was found guilty of 11 felonies, including fraud and money laundering. Flores will serve out Uresti's term until 2021. "I owe this first to God and then to the grassroots in all of our counties in Senate District 19," Flores said. "Primarily this is an example of what happens when you have a united front and a grassroots effort. So now it’s time to go to work." Flores benefited from some high profile endorsements from Gov. Greg Abbott, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and both U.S. senators. His win increases the Senate GOP majority in Texas to 21 seats. Democrats have been excited about Beto O'Rourke's chances against Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), but a new Quinnipiac poll shows Cruz up by a comfortable 9 points. What was that about a blue wave?<doc-sep>Voters elected political newcomer Pete Flores to the Texas Senate on Tuesday, flipping a Democratic district red for the first time in 139 years and bolstering Republicans’ supermajority in the chamber ahead of the November elections. A retired game warden, Flores defeated former state and U.S. Rep. Pete Gallego for the Senate District 19 seat after receiving backing from some of the state’s most prominent politicians, including Gov. Greg Abbott, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, and U.S. Sens John Cornyn and Ted Cruz. “We conservatives are conservative in the way we make approaches. The gunfight’s not over until the last shot’s fired,” Flores told the Express-News after Gallego conceded in a phone call just before 9 p.m. “The last shot’s been fired.” SUBSCRIBERS: How a retired game warden defied odds in Senate District 19 According the Secretary of State’s website, Flores won with 53 percent of the vote to Gallego’s 47 percent with 44,487 ballots cast. Flores and Gallego competed in Tuesday’s runoff after emerging from an eight-candidate field in first- and second-place, respectively, in July’s special election to replace former Sen. Carlos Uresti. The longtime lawmaker vacated his seat in June after being convicted of 11 felony charges. In his victory speech, Flores reflected about the historic significance of his win and the job ahead. “This district has not been Republican since Reconstruction. And in September of 2018, it’s Republican once again,” Flores told supporters. “The work starts tomorrow.” Christian Archer, Gallego’s campaign strategist, said he was shocked by the results, adding that they weren’t able to generate as much excitement as the Republicans. “I don’t have any regrets, but I have a lot of disappointment,” Archer said. Flores’ win marked an incredible upset in a district that political observers said shouldn’t have been competitive for Republicans. Low turnout in special elections and high-level GOP interests in preserving a Senate supermajority helped push Flores across the line, they said. “It will provide a completely unexpected gift for Republicans for the next legislative session,” said Mark Jones, a professor of political science at Rice University. READ ALSO: Judge denies Texas GOP's request that could have kept Democrat off SD 19 ballot Jones said Flores’ victory all but assured a Republican supermajority next year, which would allow Senate Republicans to bring bills to the floor without any Democratic support “Tonight, I doubt anyone other than Pete Flores is happier than Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick,” Jones said. Indeed, Patrick was jubilant at Flores’ victory party at Don Pedro’s restaurant on San Antonio’s Southwest Side. “Tonight, you all just made history,” Patrick told supporters. “For the first time in history, we have 21 Republican senators. For the first time in history, we have a Hispanic Republican senator.” Patrick, who spent around $175,000 on Flores’ campaign, said the supermajority was secured Tuesday night. “This guy gives us a two-thirds majority,” he said. Late Tuesday, the Republican Party of Texas also touted Flores’ win. “Congratulations to Peter Flores on his stunning victory in SD 19 tonight — a thrilling win for Peter Flores, the citizens of SD 19 and Republicans across Texas,” Chairman James Dickey said in a statement. More than 25,000 Texans voted in the early voting period and by mail before Tuesday. Some county election officials said they’ve seen higher turnout in the runoff than the special election a few months ago. Brandon Rottinghaus, a professor of political science at the University of Houston and author of “Inside Texas Politics,” credited Gallego’s loss to complacency. Earlier Tuesday, he said Flores’ candidacy energized state GOP leaders who saw the district as a potential steal. In Medina County, a line started to form at the polling location in Castroville around 4:30 p.m. Hilda Mendoza, the election judge there, said turnout was higher than expected, which she said was likely because the election pitted a Republican against a Democrat. “It was an enormous ... increase” from the special election across Devine, Hondo and Castroville, Mendoza said. Voters in the heavily-Republican district said they were confident Flores would win. Others said they did not want to elect Gallego, who previously represented the county. “We’ve had Pete Gallego and I wasn’t happy with what he did before,” Marie Rowe said. In Bexar County, Elections Administrator Jacque Callanen said turnout was relatively low, but impressive for a special election. “They’re voting like crazy,” Callanen said. At around 6:30 p.m., as pollsters were packing up “Vote Here” signs at Collier Elementary School in South San Antonio, Jose Duran cast his ballot for Gallego. “The seat was empty. You have to fill it with somebody,” Duran said. He preferred Gallego because of his experience in government, he said. Ruben Trejo, who also voted in the final hour, said the choice was simple: He’s a Democrat, so he also chose Gallego. The last Republican to hold the seat was Andrew Phelps McCormick. According to the Legislative Library of Texas, he left office in 1879.<doc-sep>
A Republican candidate won an upset victory Tuesday night in the runoff for a Texas state Senate seat that had been held by Democrats for more than a decade. Pete Flores (R), a conservative former leader of the state Parks and Wildlife Department’s law enforcement division, won a surprise victory over Democrat Pete Gallego Pete Pena GallegoER doctor chosen to lead Hispanic Caucus 4 Texas GOP congressional primary runoffs to watch GOP candidate scores upset win in Texas state Senate runoff MORE. ADVERTISEMENT The runoff election was held following the resignation of the seat's previous holder, state Sen. Carlos Uresti (D), after Uresti was found guilty of charges related to defrauding investors in an oil services company and sentenced to prison. Uresti previously defeated Flores in 2016 by double digits. Flores won in an eight-way special election encompassing both parties earlier this year, with Gallego trailing him by single digits. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) congratulated Flores on his victory in a statement. Republicans now control 21 of the state's 31 Senate seats. “Pete’s strong law enforcement background will be invaluable to the Legislature as we work to combat human trafficking and provide greater protections for our peace officers,” Abbott said. “I look forward to working alongside him next session to build a brighter future for all Texans.” Texas has been looked at by Democrats as a potential target for the party ahead of November's midterm elections, with several Texas Republicans in diverse districts seen as vulnerable to Democratic challenges. Rep. Beto O'Rourke Beto O'RourkeO'Rourke considering Texas governor bid: report O'Rourke clarifies remarks, leaves door open to gubernatorial bid O'Rourke says he's not planning on run for Texas governor MORE (D) has mounted a high-profile challenge against Sen. Ted Cruz Rafael (Ted) Edward CruzGOP senators introduce resolution condemning antisemitic violence amid 'horrific' spike in attacks O'Rourke considering Texas governor bid: report Cruz planning resolution to support arms sales to Israel MORE (R) for the state's Senate seat as Democrats attempt to retake both chambers of Congress in November. O'Rourke trailed Cruz by 9 points in a poll of likely voters released Tuesday. Democrats need a net gain of 23 House seats and 2 U.S. Senate seats to retake both chambers in November.