Texas’s Political Strategies: A Roadmap for Wisconsin Democrats Under Devin Remiker

June 16, 2025 | Boncopia.com

A New Era for WisDems in a Competitive Landscape

On June 15, 2025, the Democratic Party of Wisconsin (WisDems) elected Devin Remiker as its new chairman at its state convention in Wisconsin Dells, setting an ambitious course for the 2026 midterm elections. As a swing state with a history of tight races, Wisconsin shares parallels with Texas, a former Democratic stronghold turned Republican bastion that Democrats are striving to make competitive again. Texas’s political strategies—marked by GOP dominance, Democratic urban strength, and evolving voter demographics—offer critical lessons for Remiker and WisDems as they aim for a Democratic “trifecta” in 2026. By examining Texas’s tactics, WisDems can refine their approach to mobilize voters, counter GOP strategies, and leverage Wisconsin’s purple terrain.

Devin Remiker’s Vision: Powering WisDems Forward

Devin Remiker, a 32-year-old former WisDems executive director, secured the chairmanship with 485 votes in a ranked-choice election, defeating Joe Zepecki and William Garcia. Building on outgoing chairman Ben Wikler’s legacy, which saw $262 million raised and victories in 10 of 13 statewide races since 2019, Remiker emphasizes year-round organizing, grassroots engagement, and Wisconsin’s newly fair legislative maps. His call to “hit the gas” targets key 2026 races, including the governor’s seat, 17 state Senate seats, and a state Supreme Court position.

Texas, unlike Wisconsin’s current swing-state status, is a Republican stronghold, with no Democrat winning statewide office since 1994. However, its urban Democratic majorities and shifting demographics offer hope for future gains, providing strategies WisDems can adapt to maintain their competitive edge.

Texas’s Political Landscape: From Blue to Red

Texas was a Democratic bastion for a century post-Reconstruction, part of the “Solid South,” but shifted Republican starting in the late 1960s due to civil rights legislation and cultural realignments. By the 1990s, Republicans dominated, controlling all statewide offices, both U.S. Senate seats, and majorities in the state House, Senate, and Texas Supreme Court. Despite this, Texas’s fast-growing urban centers—Houston, Dallas, Austin, San Antonio, and El Paso—lean Democratic, mirroring Wisconsin’s urban strongholds in Milwaukee and Madison.

Texas’s political geography features a stark urban-rural divide, similar to Wisconsin’s. Republicans dominate rural areas and small cities, while Democrats hold major cities. However, Texas Democrats’ hopes of flipping the state, fueled by Beto O’Rourke’s narrow 2018 Senate loss to Ted Cruz by 2.6%, were dashed in 2020 and 2024, with Trump winning by 13.7% in 2024. The GOP’s success with Latino and Asian-American voters, who gave Trump 55% support in 2024, underscores the challenge Democrats face in diversifying their coalition.

Texas’s Political Strategies: Lessons for WisDems

Texas’s political tactics, shaped by GOP organizational strength and Democratic efforts to regain ground, offer WisDems strategies to emulate and pitfalls to avoid. Here are key approaches and their relevance to Wisconsin:

1. Leveraging Urban Majorities

Texas Democrats hold majorities in the state’s five largest cities—Houston, Dallas, Austin, San Antonio, and El Paso—where diverse populations drive Democratic support. Groups like Beto O’Rourke’s Powered by People emphasize year-round canvassing to boost turnout, a strategy that increased Biden’s margins in Austin in 2020. WisDems can replicate this by intensifying voter outreach in Milwaukee and Madison, while targeting suburban areas like Waukesha County, where educated voters are trending Democratic, similar to Texas’s suburban Dallas and Houston areas.

2. Issue-Driven Campaigns

Texas Democrats focus on issues like public education, healthcare, and reproductive rights to mobilize voters. Beto O’Rourke’s 2022 gubernatorial campaign highlighted Texas’s low per-pupil spending (44th nationally) and the state’s power grid failures, resonating with urban voters. A 2024 Hobby School poll found 50% of Texas voters believe the state is on the wrong track, offering Democrats an opening to address economic concerns.

Wisconsin Democrats have used similar issues, like abortion rights, to drive turnout in 2023 and 2025 state Supreme Court races, with 57% of voters opposing restrictive laws per a 2023 Marquette Law School poll. Remiker can amplify messaging on education funding and economic opportunity, appealing to Wisconsin’s working-class voters in Racine and Kenosha, much like Texas Democrats target affordability.

3. Countering GOP Voter Outreach

Texas Republicans have excelled at voter registration, flipping Hispanic voters in South Texas and achieving a 1 million voter registration advantage by 2024. Their focus on cultural issues—border security, gun rights, and anti-abortion policies—resonates with rural and Latino voters. Democrats struggle to counter this, with operatives like Matt Angle criticizing the party’s focus on progressive base issues over kitchen-table concerns.

WisDems face similar GOP efforts, such as recent voter ID ballot measures. Remiker can adopt Texas Democrats’ call to “meet voters where they are,” focusing on bipartisan issues like infrastructure and healthcare to neutralize GOP cultural narratives, as suggested by Texas strategist Ali Zaidi.

4. Social Media and Digital Engagement

The Texas Democratic Party maintains a robust online presence, with thousands of followers on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, and millions on email and text lists. Chair Gilberto Hinojosa emphasizes digital outreach to engage young and diverse voters. WisDems can expand their digital campaigns, using short, engaging videos to highlight economic and social issues, targeting young voters in college towns like Eau Claire and La Crosse, similar to Texas’s focus on Austin’s youth.

5. Fighting Gerrymandering

Texas’s Republican-led redistricting has been a barrier, with Democrats arguing it’s a partisan gerrymander. A 2005 Supreme Court ruling found parts of Texas’s map unconstitutional, leading to Democratic gains in 2006. Wisconsin’s 2024 fair maps offer a new opportunity, and Remiker can learn from Texas Democrats’ advocacy for transparent redistricting to boost voter trust and turnout in competitive districts.

Challenges and Opportunities for WisDems

Texas’s rightward shift, driven by GOP voter outreach and Democratic struggles with Latino voters, warns WisDems against neglecting diverse constituencies. In 2024, 55% of Texas Latinos voted for Trump, a trend Wisconsin Democrats must counter with targeted outreach to Milwaukee’s Latino community. Texas’s low voter turnout—18 points higher in 2018 than 2014 but still 11th-lowest nationally—highlights the challenge of mobilizing nonvoters, a group not inherently Democratic. WisDems must avoid assuming urban turnout alone will suffice, focusing instead on suburban and rural voters.

However, Texas’s urban Democratic strength and Wisconsin’s fair maps offer parallel opportunities. Remiker can emulate Texas Democrats’ focus on education and healthcare, while leveraging Wisconsin’s competitive history to flip legislative seats, unlike Texas’s entrenched GOP majorities.

Remiker’s Roadmap: Applying Texas’s Lessons

Remiker’s leadership team, including First Vice Chair Sarah Godlewski and Second Vice Chair Joshua Taylor, can adapt Texas’s tactics with Wisconsin’s fundraising strength. Key priorities include:

• Urban and Suburban Mobilization: Strengthen turnout in Milwaukee and Madison, while targeting suburban Waukesha, like Texas Democrats in Houston and Dallas.

• Issue-Driven Messaging: Focus on education, healthcare, and reproductive rights, mirroring Texas’s affordability campaigns.

• Countering GOP Outreach: Address voter ID and cultural narratives with bipartisan economic messaging, as Texas Democrats urge.

• Digital Expansion: Use social media to engage young and diverse voters, inspired by Texas’s online strategy.

• Fair-Map Advocacy: Promote fair maps to boost voter trust, drawing on Texas’s redistricting lessons.

Why This Matters

Texas and Wisconsin share urban Democratic strongholds and competitive histories, but Texas’s GOP dominance highlights the stakes for WisDems. Texas’s strategies—leveraging urban bases, issue-driven campaigns, and digital outreach—offer a playbook for Wisconsin to maintain its swing-state edge. As Remiker leads WisDems toward 2026, adapting these tactics could shape Wisconsin’s political future and inform national Democratic strategies in battleground states.

Thought-Provoking Questions for Readers:

1. How can WisDems under Devin Remiker adapt Texas Democrats’ urban mobilization tactics to boost turnout in Wisconsin’s suburbs and rural areas?

2. What lessons from Texas’s struggles with Latino voters can WisDems apply to engage Wisconsin’s diverse communities in 2026?

3. Can WisDems counter GOP cultural narratives as effectively as Texas Democrats aim to, and what economic issues might resonate most in Wisconsin?

Sources: Information compiled from Wisconsin Examiner, NBC26, WisPolitics, Marquette University Law, Texas Tribune, Blue Tent, Hobby School of Public Affairs, and posts on X. For more on U.S. News & Politics, visit Boncopia.com.