For months, the special election to succeed Acting Comptroller Kelly Hancock in a red-leaning North Texas Senate seat revolved around the two Republicans in the race.

But once the early voting and Election Day ballots were all counted on Tuesday, it was Democrat Taylor Rehmet who raked in the most votes out of all three candidates, coming within three percentage points — fewer than 3,000 votes — of a stunning outright win. He led with 47.6% of votes over conservative activist Leigh Wambsganss’ 36% and former Republican Southlake Mayor John Huffman’s 16%.

It was a remarkable finish for a Democrat running in a Tarrant County-based district that voted for President Donald Trump by more than 17 points last year, and who spent just $68,000 compared to the millions deployed by each of his

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