Democrat Vikki Goodwin declares victory over Dan Patrick to become Texas lieutenant governor

Vikki Goodwin declared victory over Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick on Tuesday to become the first Democratic lieutenant governor of Texas in 27 years, handedly dismissing an architect of the modern Texas Republican Party who pushed the state further right in his nearly two decades in public office. 

Patrick has not yet conceded. 

The Austin state representative unseated Patrick, a close ally of President Donald Trump, amid a surge of Democratic victories that plucked the state’s minority power out of a losing streak. She inherits one of the most powerful elected offices in Texas — for now. The authorities of the state’s second-in-command, who presides over the Texas Senate, largely derive from rules passed by state senators; the chamber will retain a GOP majority that could curtail the position’s might.

Goodwin’s pitch to voters centered on public schools, access to healthcare and affordability. Vastly outspent, she traversed the state to introduce herself to voters in non-political environments and, when able, harped on what she bet were Patrick’s biggest vulnerabilities: his incumbency and a widely unpopular push to ban hemp-derived THC products.

By late summer, it appeared the representative — who flipped a Texas House seat in 2018 — was cutting through, as Patrick began naming her and releasing attack ads, two feats previous challengers struggled to earn in his previous three runs. Also a first: Goodwin led Patrick in one poll in October.

For months, Patrick warned supporters and Republican peers the political forecast was dire. At a conference in April, he said the GOP would have a “tough time” retaining control of the Texas House.

But like other top Republicans, Patrick focused most of his energy during the spring and summer on the top of the ticket: James Talarico, who defeated Ken Paxton for the U.S. Senate seat.

After all, the odds were stacked against Goodwin. Trump won Texas two years ago by 14 points and Patrick won his last reelection in 2022 by 10 points. 

In three terms Patrick cemented his legacy in the Capitol as a champion of far right causes that thinned the line separating church and state. 

Patrick was first elected to office in 2007 as a political newcomer sent to the Texas Senate with no previous experience holding public office. He left little doubt about the hardline conservative ideas he would pursue. As a freshman senator, he floated proposals to offer women money to forgo abortions and empowering local police to question the immigration status of people they pull over.

He helped shepherd the state’s near-total ban on abortion and increased collaboration between U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and state police, from tiny towns to the Texas Department of Public Safety — two accomplishments among a myriad of conservative victories for the Republican Party. 

A native Texan, Goodwin first entered politics eight years ago when she ran for state House. Goodwin, a real estate broker and small business owner, was spurred to run because after Trump’s first presidential victory. 

Growing up, Goodwin’s mother served on the Dallas ISD school board. In that role, her mother would complain about how little control the school trustees had over money, because the Legislature largely designates that amount of money schools receive per child. Goodwin says that demonstrated to her the importance of state representatives.  

In her longshot bid against Patrick, she has advocated for boosting the state’s share of public school funding, undoing restrictions on hemp-derived THC products and taxing those products for revenue to pay for a health insurance program for low-income Texans. 

Few policy proposals had earned Patrick more backlash than his push to ban hemp-derived THC products in 2025, even drawing him criticism from far right personalities who have long adored him. 

The push, which the Legislature ultimately passed before the governor vetoed it, reflected the way the lieutenant governor wielded power in the chamber and in senate districts. Perhaps nowhere was that more clear than in his endorsements of GOP Texas Senate hopefuls. No candidate defeated another who carried Patrick’s blessing during his tenure presiding over the chamber. 

Patrick also flexed his close ties to President Trump, having run his three presidential campaigns in the state and benefitting from the president’s trust — which sometimes led to an endorsement from the top Republican in the nation, as well, for state Senate candidates.