Rehmet, Wambsganss Set for Senate Rematch
Democrat Taylor Rehmet and Republican Leigh Wambsganss face each other again in a Tarrant County state Senate race after Rehmet flipped the seat in January.
Updated on Nov. 4, 2026 in Elections
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Democrat Taylor Rehmet, a Fort Worth union leader and Lockheed Martin machinist, flipped a longtime Republican state Senate seat in a January 2026 special election by 14 percentage points. Republican Leigh Wambsganss of Southlake is challenging him in a rematch on November 3, 2026.
Why it matters
The contest tests whether the January flip reflects a durable shift in a Tarrant County district where President Donald Trump won comfortably in 2024. Both campaigns are positioning around health care costs, property taxes and public school funding.
Rehmet won the January special election by 14 percentage points, a result that flipped a seat Republicans had held for years. The extraction does not indicate how the November electorate will compare with the smaller special-election turnout.
The players
Taylor Rehmet
Rehmet is a Democrat and Fort Worth union leader who works as a machinist at Lockheed Martin and flipped a longtime Republican state Senate seat in January 2026.
Leigh Wambsganss
Wambsganss is a Republican from Southlake who is seeking to reclaim the Tarrant County state Senate seat she is contesting against Rehmet.
The details
Wambsganss has dropped "ULTRA MAGA" from her social media and removed Trump imagery from her website, though she denies distancing herself from the president. She accuses Rehmet of promoting far-left policies, including rent control, while Rehmet has campaigned on lowering health care costs and property taxes and increasing public school funding.
Timeline
January 2026: Rehmet wins the special election and flips the Republican state Senate seat.
November 3, 2026: Tarrant County voters decide the Rehmet-Wambsganss rematch; North Texas polls close at 7 p.m.
Political Context
The January special-election flip is the precedent the November race must either confirm or overturn in a district Trump carried comfortably in 2024. Wambsganss's effort to distance her campaign from the president's imagery and rhetoric reflects that pressure.
Voters in Tarrant County will choose who represents their state Senate district, shaping decisions on health care costs, property taxes and public school funding. The outcome determines which priorities the district's senator carries into the Legislature.
The takeaway
Voters weighing this race should compare each candidate's stated positions on health care costs, property taxes and school funding against the district's priorities. The January result shows the seat is competitive, so turnout in November is likely to matter.
What happens next
Tarrant County voters will decide the Rehmet-Wambsganss race on November 3, 2026.
Further reading
Follow the latest on Elections coverage across Texas for more context on this race.
Source note: This article includes information reported by The Dallas Morning News.
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