Grieve Today, Fight Tomorrow

In the shadow of defeat, we can find our strength.

Many of you woke up this morning to learn that the worst-case scenario became a reality last night. Trump won, Ted Cruz won, and Democrats failed to make the gains in Texas we hoped for.

I know you’re feeling anxious about what this might mean for your rights, your families, and the people you love. The immigrant and LGBTQ+ communities, and all those who felt under attack, are wondering what the next four years will bring.

Today is a day to grieve. Everyone will need time to express shock, anger, and fear. Respect those who need to talk about what happened and those who don’t. Everyone will need to process the results in their own way.

Tomorrow is when we prepare. We’ll regroup, realign, and find new ways to protect our communities and our values. The path forward won’t be easy, but we’ve faced dark moments before and know how to rise stronger.

Dark days are ahead. We must support one another, build resilient networks, and ensure no one feels alone. Our power lies in solidarity.

America has faced the darkness before. We’ve been living in the darkness in Texas for the last two decades. Progress doesn’t always come in a straight line. Sometimes, there are setbacks. But what has always defined us and made America great is our resilience and belief that better days are always within reach if we’re willing to fight for them.

“The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.”

-Martin Luther King Jr.

America is bigger than Trump and his extremism. Democracy will end only if we give up. I am not going to give up.

Don’t lose heart. Don’t lose hope. Let’s keep fighting the good fight, hand in hand, shoulder to shoulder, until every child, every family, and every community across America feels the promise of tomorrow.

What comes next?

Perhaps some of you want to know what went wrong, where the votes were, and how this could have happened. I’ll have a full breakdown of the Texas results in the next few days, but I said that if we got closer to a 2 million turnout on Election Day, it would be bad for us. We needed 3 million. With some votes still being counted, it looks like we had 2.3 million votes on Election Day.

Unsurprisingly, we lost South Texas, which I said may happen. We lost the Texas Democratic Party Chair’s home county. In the coming days, I will publish an article detailing why he should immediately resign.

The Texas House starts filing bills next week to prepare for the 89th Legislative Session, which begins in January. Stay tuned for updates on that.

But today, we grieve.

In the coming weeks, you’ll see a lot of finger-pointing and analysis. Some will say we didn’t work hard enough, while others will say the odds were always stacked against us. But let’s be clear: the fight for justice and equality was never going to be easy. The deck has long been stacked against anyone pushing for real, lasting progress. And that’s precisely why we can’t afford to let this defeat be the end of the story.

So, if you’re feeling hopeless today, let it sit with you. Let it fuel you. This is a long journey, and each of us has a role in it. Whether it’s organizing in our neighborhoods, speaking out at town halls, educating ourselves and others, or holding our representatives accountable, we’re in this together.

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