In virtually all elections, most metropolitan areas tend to vote blue. It happens every election, with rural area typically voting Republican. Some places have been exceptions to that rule, however. Namely, Salt Lake City, Oklahoma City, and a few other cities buck that trend, and usually lean right. In Texas though, we are not so lucky. The big cities like Houston, Dallas, and Austin have all been sliding Democrat more and more over the last couple decades.

Now, the cities are major Democrat strongholds in the state, as Texas keeps marching gradually to the left as a whole. But, where did all of this start impacting the state we love?

SMU political science professor Cal Jillson says this began with major diversity shifts in the major cities.

"As they became more diverse, they became more liberal...black Texans tends to vote Democrat, as do Hispanics and Asians...the Hispanic and Asian populations have grown in Texas," he says. "Those cities then have become more Democratic."

It is no secret that Houston has been leaning more liberal in recent years. It began with the inexplicable election of Lina Hidalgo as County Judge, and almost came to a head with ultra-liberal Shelia Jackson Lee coming close to being the city's new mayor.

From the 2000 census to the 2020 census, the population of Hispanics in Houston has gone up from 37 percent to 45 percent. That has made a massive impact on the voting inclination of the city. But while the cities remain blue strongholds, Republicans get a tip of the scales in their favor elsewhere.

"What tips the balance is the suburbs, and those traditionally are red, but not as deep red as rural Texas," he says.

But diversity is beginning to head out to the suburbs, as people grow weary of the increasing crime rates in urban areas. But that might not be the only reason for concern in what has been a normally Republican base.

"These are sort of shifting a bit...particularly suburban women have been uncomfortable with Donald Trump on the issue of abortion, and on the issue of immigration," he says.

The push to turn Texas blue politically fired up in 2014, with Governor Greg Abbott's battle against Wendy David. Things really ramped up during Ted Cruz's defense of his Senate seat against Robert Francis O'Rourke aka Beto.

Even after visiting all 254 counties in the state, and raising millions, Beto still did not really even come all that close to Cruz. This time around, Cruz faces another challenger, a state congressman and former football player, by the name of Colin Allred. In the first quarter, Allred says they raised over nine million dollars for his campaign, which is nothing to brush off.

Allred is yet the latest shot at statewide office by the Democrats, and Jillson says their race in November will be the proper gauge as to how far left the state has become.

"We have to see if Allred can get as close as Beto did, or maybe a little closer...and see where we stand in Texas turning purple," he says.

A Democrat has not won statewide elected office in Texas since 1994.

On-Air Schedule

Houston's Morning News