The math is easy to figure out in the question above. But not, when it’s about political math! These figures stand for 2,203, 671 votes cast in the 2026 May 3^rd Primary Election in Texas for both Democrats and Republicans combined.  The Democratic Party winner was Gina Hinojosa with 1,289,576 votes cast for her getting her the nomination without a runoff. On the Republican side, Greg Abbott the incumbent governor also won a majority of votes avoiding a run off. He received 1,764,929 votes. Clearly, he received almost half a million votes more than Hinojosa. He might be the shoe-in winner over her come the November General Election. He will continue to be the longest serving governor of any state in the US. He might win a 5 term in office making it a 20-year incumbency. It all will depend on voter turnout come November 3, 2026. AND, how much more damage the R’s can do between now and then with voter suppression.  The Texas Secretary of State has cancelled so many voters. As of August 24, 2024, just 2 years ago, the governor  announced the removal of 1.1 million voters are being ineligible for a variety of reasons. (see https://gov.texas.gov/news/post/governor-abbott-announced-1-million-ineligible-voters-removed-from rolls).How many more have been removed that we do not know about at this writing?

We all know about drop offs in voting. For example, the least number of eligible voters turn out for bond elections. The highest turn out is for the General Election. In between ,there is also a drop off between the Primary and a run-off when necessary as in the recent 2026 case for US Senator and a few other down the ballot races.

It got really messy in the Republican Primary with incumbent  US Senator John Cornyn, being opposed by the incumbent Lt. Governor, Ken Paxton, under indictment for several crimes. Cornyn only got 910,352 votes to Paxton’s 878,564; neither with a majority so a run-off was necessary scheduled for May 26^th . Then, Trump TACO the Dumbo stepped in and endorsed Paxton, turning his back on Cornyn who had been supporting Trump an amazing 99% of the time with his votes in the Senate.   

Incredulously, Cornyn lost to Paxton in the run-off. Paxton got 885,962 votes this time. An increase of 7,398 votes from the March totals. Maybe, these were MEGA TRUMPERS who had not turned out in the March election. But Cornyn only got 501,729 votes in the runoff. He dropped down by 408,623 votes!  Two things are very clear: Texas Republicans follow Trump blindly and most loyally; they voted their full numbers in both elections  The other so-called moderate Republicans, 400,000 or so, did not. There was another Republican in the race, Wesley Hunt, a Black man, who got 292,663 votes in the March Primary. His voters may also have not turned out in the run-off election This is the drop off phenomenon in full play among the Republicans; which is not among the die hard Trumpers. Let me repeat: 2.2 million voted in the March Primary election. Only 1.4 million voted in the May Runoff election. This is a 36% decline in voter turnout. In my view, it was the Republicans who are not MAGA Trumpers.

Over on the Democratic Party side, James Talarico won the Primary without need for a runoff with 2,252,511 votes to Jasmine Crockett’s 1,068, 387 votes. In this race there was a 3^rd candidate, Ahmad Hassan who got 31,000 votes. So, among the 2.3 million voters who went to the Democratic Primary and voted representing a total of only 12.4% of eligible voters in the state, there is a ugly specter in the background.  The D’s are overjoyed that Talarico’s vote count surpassed that of Paxton’s in the run-off. So what? 87.6% of all eligible voters did not go vote! What if the Crockett voters and those of Hassan do not turn out in November either? What if the politiqueras in South Texas only go out and ask their set number of voters to cast votes only for Gina Hinojosa? The Democratic Party traditionally has never invested real money in getting their voters out; they have relied on politiqueras who were always supported by individual politicians, to get votes for them specifically, not the entire ballot list of Democrats. Gina’s father, Gilbert Hinojosa, the State Democratic Party Chair, for too long a time never put a stop to this vote harvesting scheme and used the same tactic when he was a local candidate in the Rio Grande Valley area before becoming State Chair. This can go either way. Politiqueras will earn their pay for getting the votes out for others and not Gina or getting votes out for Gina and none others. 

How can the Democrats Win in Texas? .

1. Seek out the Southwest Voter Registration and Education Project, ACLU, League of Women Voters, and sympathetic labor unions to ask the local groups of these organizations if they will join you in coalition and or alliance to get new voters registered and old one re-registered. Many of those voters being purged or will be purged is because of an unreported name change to county voter registrar or secretary of state (like women who marry and take the husband’s name; 18 year olds plus  who go off to college or just otherwise move out from home and did not report new address; those who joined the military and are now stationed elsewhere in the country or the world over; and those who registered elsewhere and now are back home) . Do not be surprised if they turn you down.

2 a. Read Texas Election Code 31.003 and 13.046 plus Texas Administrative Code Chapter 81 and the National Voter Registration Act (NVRA) . Find out it is Texas State Law to register high school students about to be 18 by election date on Nov. 3^rd or already are 18. By law, the high school principal at every Texas high school MUST register students to vote twice during the year. The next opportune time is late August early Sept.  Do it before Oct. 1^st. Best thing is to get time on the next school board agenda on this issue. Make them vote on complying with the law (READ IT TO THEM) by doing high school voter registration at every high school within the district.  It is a misdemeanor not to do this. It becomes a felony, once noticed to do this and they don’t for a second time. Only 26% of high schools in the country do this . The Texas rate is not much higher at 38%! The Texas Observer reported in 2018 that 180,000 seniors were not registered to vote. This is the largest national crime being done to our democracy. The usual excuse will be that the principal is your friend, your neighbor, your relative etc. and is overworked. Answer: Volunteer to do it for the principal.

2b. Make friends with the County or District to go after prosecution under no. 3. If the school district or high school principal refuses they face criminal charges. You can get the complainer but the Co. or Dist. Atty .must bring the case forward.  

3. Get an old voter list from a recent campaign and look carefully to see that not all persons on a given street are registered. Go register them. If not citizens, old enough, etc. make a list of these so you can go see them later when they become eligible even if you are the one to have to get them into naturalization classes and raise funds to pay for those exorbitant fees charged now.
4. Do not rely on phone banking lists. Or the old voter list above in #3. They usually are old and out of date or its is a land line phone number no longer in use. You are wasting your time. Best thing is to start your own list of cell phones and email addresses on your own forms when you go door-to-door that you will enter into your laptop.
5. Those in active military service can register and vote. It does not matter where they are from the US. They can vote anywhere they, want including   The main thing in 2026 are the Texas top seats and the US Senate and Congressional seats . You will take care of that location but if you are in a very RED metro area register them in your city, suburb, or other small cities in your county. If you feel you will do well in your county, then add a task and try finding an adjacent or nearby adjacent rural county to register them in. There is no need for an address or precinct. What you do is contact the active military person, first. Everyone in your neighborhood has such a relative in the service or knows someone that does.  Second, ask the soldier if they will register to help you out with their vote. Make them say they will they do that. Next, you tell them how to do this. All they need to do is ask their Commanding Officer (C O) to register them in X county, Texas for the upcoming General Election. Say, you pick Uvalde County (Uvalde) or Hays County (San Marcos) or Guadalupe County (Seguin) where you want them to vote because you are organizing there or plan to. Once the CO sends in the request to register their soldiers, the voter registration director in that county will have to timely mail them the ballots for every election to be held there in 2026 . If you keep this up for 2027 and 2028 you will have to do this again. But every election in 2027 and 2028 also means city, county, school board, and college district elections. Organize groups in those cities (Coalition or Alliance) to find and file candidates for EVERY position. Then, get ready for all federal elections in 2028.

Next to lastly, you might want to ask the soldier to find 2-3 buddies to help out. They have nothing to lose because they are not voting anyway anywhere. Keep list and update it from time to time because soldiers are deployed regularly elsewhere. Lastly, after the election check to see if the soldier(s) voted or not. If not, find out who dropped the ball and why. Take corrective action.  

6. Try to find a group like yours in a nearby rural county because Texas now has 130 counties that are majority Hispanic population . Most of these residents are eligible to vote but are not registered or they just do not vote. That is because of apathy or cynicism. Find out which one because it may be able to be corrected. Apathy is the easiest if you use family. Register them, take them to vote, have family help you with this. Cynicism is the hardest because they are so correct in feeling this way. Governments haves failed us over and over. Agree with them but ask if they do you (or one of their family members or comadres/compadres) the favor of registering and voting this one more time. Just one more time.

All governmental units in these counties have a city council, a school board, community college members up for election in 2027 and least one or two County commissioners up for election in 2028., a JP,. a Constable, maybe more . Plus there will be State Representatives, State Senators, US Rep, and US Senate positions. A coalition of these rural counties can produce needed voters for urban areas nearby or to offset the vote count. Gerrymandering usually takes in those rural counties to help the urban candidate/officeholder.    

7. Same as SOLDIERS, the jails are full of people that do not vote because they are not registered or no one has asked them to do so, much less vote. The exception for prisoners is if they have a felony conviction; that is a disqualification. We used to be able to do these but not anymore thanks to Abbott once again. But, not all of those in jail are there because they have a felony conviction. They are there usually because they cannot afford to make bail and or have not pay restitution and court fees. They must do jail time to clear up those balances.

Ask permission from the city jailer, county Sheriff, nearby prison Warden to get inside and register voters. If denied, find a relative. Everyone know someone who knows someone she has such a prisoner.  Write the prisoner about registering to vote as a favor you (name of relative or compadre/comadres. They love mail.  Follow up and see if they have done so or not. Find out why not and take corrective action. Repeat again for getting an absentee or mail-in ballot.

Do all of this and I guarantee you will win.