Texas Democrats didn't pull off the big upset they were hoping for in the 2018 midterm election -- but they did win some smaller battles across the state.
Senator Ted Cruz (R) clinched the victory to keep his seat over Congressman Beto O'Rourke (D), but only by 223,091 votes in a state where Republicans have historically beat Democrats in statewide elections by one million votes or more.
O'Rourke won in all of the state's urban counties and cities, including Austin, Dallas, Houston and San Antonio. But there was an overflow, especially around Travis County. O'Rourke also won in Williamson and Hays Counties, which have historically been red.
And though she was unsuccessful, Democrat M.J. Hegar -- who ran against longtime Republican John Carter to represent District 31 in the U.S. House -- also won Williamson County. The incumbent was able to secure Bell County, winning the seat with 56.8 percent of the vote.
And while none of the Austin area's U.S. House districts flipped, it's a different story in the Texas House.
"If you go down the line, the Democrats took two Republican seats in the Congressional delegation, two Republican seats in the Texas Senate, 12 Republican seats in the Texas House. The Republicans didn't knock out a single Democrat," Ross Ramsey, Executive Editor of The Texas Tribune, said. "Part of that is Austin bleeding into Williamson County."
That's especially true as the Austin suburbs experience exploding growth due, in part, to affordability.
In the Texas House, Williamson County's District 52 seat, which was vacated by Larry Gonzales, went to the Democrat James Talarico. Also in WilCo, the incumbent for District 136, which encompasses Cedar Park, Republican Tony Dale lost to John Bucy. The lone Republican in the Austin delegation, Paul Workman lost to Democrat Vikki Goodwin in the race for District 47. And District 45, which is made up of Hays and Blanco counties flipped from red to blue, with Erin Zwiener winning to take over the seat vacated by Jason Issac.
Two Texas Senate seats also flipped blue. So while Republicans still hold the majority in the Texas Legislature, on polarizing issues where the party is split, Republicans may have to compromise across the aisle.