Rehmet, a labor union leader and veteran, easily defeated Republican Leigh Wambsganss, a conservative activist, in the Fort Worth-area district. With almost all votes counted, Rehmet has a comfortable lead of more than 14 percentage points.

“This victory goes to everyday working people,” Rehmet told supporters.

His victory adds to the record of Democrats overperforming in special elections so far this cycle. Democrats said it was more evidence that voters under Trump’s second administration were motivated to reject GOP candidates and their policies.

Democratic National Committee Chairman Ken Martin called it “a warning sign to Republicans across the country.”

The seat is open because the four-term GOP incumbent, Kelly Hancock, is stepping down to take a statewide office. Hancock won election handily each time he ran for office, and Republicans held the seat for decades.

The district is redder than his home, Tarrant County. Trump won the county by 5 points in 2024, but Democratic President Joe Biden carried it in 2020 by about 1,800 votes out of more than 834,000 votes cast.

Trump posted about the race on his social media platform Saturday, urging voters to come out to support Wambsganss. He called her a successful businessman and “an incredible supporter” of his Make America Great Again movement.

But Rehmet has support from national organizations, including the DNC and VoteVets, a veterans group that says it has spent $500,000 on ads. Rehmet, who served in the Air Force and works as a machinist, focuses on lowering costs, supporting public education and protecting jobs.

Democrats have been buoyed by their election performance since Trump took office. In November, the party dominated the first major Election Day since his return to the White House, especially winning the governor’s race Virginia and New Jersey.

Democratic candidates also won special elections in Kentucky and Iowa. And while Republican Matt Van Epps won a special election in Tennessee for a US House seat, the relatively small margin of victory gives Democrats hope for this fall midterms.

Rehmet’s victory allows her to serve only until early January, and she must win the November general election to remain in the seat for a full four-year term. The Texas Legislature isn’t set to reconvene until 2027, and the GOP still has a comfortable majority.