Some good news for a change.

[Liberal In Texas]

OK...Only Day One on these stats...but but but...

Of the 51,249 Texans who cast ballots Tuesday on the first day of early voting, more than half voted in the Democratic primary.

The total number of voters from the 15 counties with the most people registered is high for a midterm year.

In Dallas County, 4,023 people voted in the Democratic primary, an increase over the 2,587 people who voted in 2014 and the 2,908 in 2016.

(One must remember Dallas County is blue, and has been for a long while. Like Austin. And Houston. And San Antonio. We can't do much about the rubes in the sticks. But this is a really good trend for not only Dallas but Texas as a whole.)

Link to tweet

Political experts attribute much of Texas' increased voter turnout as a reaction to the election of President Donald Trump in 2016, as well as the state's eight open congressional seats.

"In general, there seems to be more energy, largely stemming from people's reactions to President Trump and a lot of Democrat-leaning groups trying to get people out and organized," said Robert Lowry, a political science professor at the University of Texas at Dallas. "It's maybe more Democrats than Republicans, but people who oppose him and don't like the results of the election and can't believe he won, [saying] 'We obviously can't vote against him this time but we can try to get more Democrats elected to respond to him.'"

From the Dallas Morning News.

If we can get this done in Texas...boy oh boy.

[Exotica]

1. Texas going Blue would be incredible!!!!

[RussBLib]

2. and if we could get some court-ordered redistricting in Texas

we could take back the damn state from the retrogressive greedheads.

anything is possible

[Hortensis]

10. And 2018 results affect the 2020 census.

[DUgosh]

3. I live in a deep red farm town in south Texas

At the edge of Hill Country, I voted the first day of early voting. Normally first day is crowded with Republican farmers, ranchers and “good ol boys” laughing, shaking hands and slapping each other on the back. On Tuesday morning 9am I was the only voter present. Not only was that unusual - I was not asked to show my ID which hasn’t happened in years.

[Liberal In Texas]

5. Keep the faith. Sorry you don't have more kindred spirits around.

Get your like-minded friends to the polls!

[C Moon]

9. +1

[Hortensis]

11. Wow... VERY interesting, DUGosh. This is what we need!

Are there any particular issues in your area that might in particular be demoralizing/turning off conservative voters, or just the whole mess?

Not asked for ID... Wonder what that's about. Surely it's required by the rules and no one kidnapped the usual poll workers and brought in some liberal ringers?

[Gothmog]

4. This is good news

[BigmanPigman]

6. Ann Richards has stopped rolling in her grave,

for now anyway.

[Liberal In Texas]

7. Not yet I'm afraid.

But we're getting there.

Gerrymandering here is where the whole concept started. No reason why I should have to share a congressman with some rube in Gun Barrel City (real name) in east Texas.

[czarjak]

8. We shall overcome, Take our country back...