Which January 6 Traitors Can We Vote Out This Year?

The Texas Republicans who tried to break democracy, and are still in power.

It’s been five years, and there are still eleven Congresspeople and one Senator from DC who still hold office, yet they once participated in an attempted insurrection on this country. Being the fifth anniversary, there has been a lot of looking back across the media sphere. The one thing I still can’t help but wonder is if the people who planned and executed this failed coup were prosecuted, would America be where it is today?

The reason we’re supposed to learn about our past is to prevent us from repeating the same mistakes. In America, we repeat many mistakes because Conservatives early on learned that rewriting the narrative changes the reality of the present and the future. The United Daughters of the Confederacy knew this when they pushed Lost Cause mythology into America’s public schools for generations. And Conservatives today know this, which is why they are constantly lying and making up new stories about January 6th.

When President Andrew Johnson pardoned ex-Confederates and gave them all amnesty, it opened the door for 100 years of Jim Crow in the South.

Trump’s pardon of the January 6th criminals is on a much smaller scale, and many of them have already been re-convicted of newer crimes, but he absolutely unleashed terror back on our streets.

And for the Republicans, who willfully planned this insurrection with Trump, who were caught communicating details about this insurrection, who spread intentional misinformation, and who voted against certifying the election, knowing there was no cause? They are no different than those pardoned Confederates.

After Andrew Johnson pardoned the very people who launched a war against America and committed treason, they found their way back into the halls of government. In county courthouses, the Legislature, and eventually, back in Congress. When they were back, they consistently acted out of malice and with the intent to harm.

And in the last five years, since January 6th, 2021, these Republicans in Congress have consistently acted out of malice and with the intent to harm. Backing an authoritarian, oil-first imperialist takeover of Venezuela is only the latest.

Why the Republicans keep voting for them is a different story and speaks directly to how deeply sick our society is, but their participation in January 6th should never be forgotten.

Every single election, we need to be reminded why these remaining twelve individuals are still incredibly dangerous to our state and to our nation.

These Republicans have already proved they have no loyalty to Texas, no loyalty to America, and no loyalty to the Constitution.

They chose power over all of it.

They tried to nullify millions of lawful votes, legitimize a lie after courts rejected it, and then keep the lie alive so they can use it again.

They’ll take our votes, our tax dollars, and our kids’ futures, but the minute democracy produces an outcome they don’t like, they’re ready to burn the whole system down.

And they still defended the lie afterward.

They have already proven they’ll betray the public. They’ll do it again if given the chance.

Who is still in office, and who can we get out this year?

First and foremost, the one Senator is Ted Cruz. He isn’t up again until 2030, which sucks for us. We are stuck with his sniveling, butt-kissing for four more years. Yes, I agree it sucks. On the bright side, every Congressperson is up.

TX04 - Pat Fallon.

I’m doing these seats in numerical order, and TX04 may be one of the more challenging ones under the new 2025 maps. But that doesn’t mean we try.

Beyond his participation in Trump’s insurrection and his frequent spread of misinformation, Massachusetts-native Pat Fallon has enriched himself while in Congress.

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Which is kind of funny, because multiple watchdog and congressional-ethics reports said there was “substantial reason to believe” that Fallon violated the STOCK Act by failing to disclose stock trades adequately.

But TX04 is one of the reddest seats on this list. The district is about 63% White by voting-age population, older, and reliably Republican, which is why Fallon has survived despite his extremism. But that margin reflects an electorate where Democratic participation was deeply suppressed, especially among Black voters, who make up nearly one-fifth of the district.

Flipping TX-04 would require a dramatic surge in Black turnout and erosion among rural white voters. That’s a tall order in one cycle, even if we have a big blue wave. Still, Fallon is not untouchable. This district is worth targeting as an accountability seat. Force him to spend, expose his January 6 record, and invest long-term in Black voter infrastructure that Republicans have depended on staying dormant.

Two Democrats are running for this seat, Dr. Andrew L Rubell and Jason Pearce.

TX05 - Lance Gooden.

I have said this before, and I will repeat it as long as it’s true. The two biggest LIARS in Texas are Lance Gooden and Brian Babin. Hands down, no contest. Babin is later on this list, but these two men make outlandish stories with no evidence or proof, post them on social media, and then try to legislate them. Typically, stories about immigrants, Black people, the LGBTQ+ community, or whoever else is their target of the moment. Never believe anything Lance Gooden ever says; he wouldn’t know the truth if it hit him in the head.

Also, Gooden has a lifetime score of 96% with Heritage Action. As in the Heritage Foundation. As in the people who want to turn America back to a country where only white, male property owners had rights.

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TX05 is far more competitive than its recent results suggest. The district is almost evenly split by race, with roughly half of voters identifying as people of color and a combined Black and Hispanic population exceeding 40%. The problem is turnout. Dallas County precincts in this district routinely underperform, allowing Gooden to coast on exurban and rural margins. In a strong Democratic cycle, closing that turnout gap, especially with Spanish-language outreach and a Dallas-anchored candidate who speaks to urban and suburban voters, puts this seat in play. A 9–10-point swing is absolutely plausible if Democrats treat this district as a turnout project.

There are three Democrats in this race. Ruth Torres, Chelsey Hockett, and Forrest Lumpkin.

TX11 - August Pfluger.

There’s nothing special about August Pfluger. He’s not bright or personable. He follows orders from Trump well. He doesn’t seek the limelight like other Republicans (Cruz, Van Duyne, etc.). His head is shaped like a square (cannot be unseen).

TX11 is a classic oil-patch district where Republicans still dominate on paper, winning roughly 65% of the vote. But that margin masks a younger, working-class Latino population that makes up nearly 40% of residents and remains chronically under-mobilized. Pfluger’s strength rests on oil money, not popular enthusiasm.

Flipping this district would require a labor-first, anti-exploitation message paired with serious union and turnout infrastructure. In the short term, this seat is unlikely to flip absent an economic shock or oil bust (Venezuela). Long term, though, it is exactly the kind of district where ignoring organizing now guarantees permanent Republican control later.

Two Democrats are on the ballot. Pedro “Pete” Ruiz and Claire Reynolds.

TX13 - Ronny Jackson.

Besides embarrassingly being strung out on some form of uppers while on C-Span from time to time, Ronny Jackson likes to kill off endangered species for fossil fuel money.

Oh yeah, and he was texting the Oath Keepers as the January 6th Insurrection unfolded.

TX13 is deep-red territory, still more than 60% White. The Panhandle remains culturally conservative, and while the Latino population is growing, it is politically disengaged and structurally shut out. Under current conditions, this is not a realistic flip target. Its value lies elsewhere, such as in opposition research, narrative accountability, and the national exposure of Ronny Jackson as an unserious and dangerous figure.

Mark Nair is the Democrat on the ballot.

TX14 - Randy Weber.

Weber is a climate denier. Back when state AGs were investigating Exxon for allegedly misleading the public/investors about climate risks, Weber publicly attacked the investigators as a “posse” and framed the probe as “environmental activism, which is pretty insane when you realize that this district contains some of the biggest polluters and most active cancer clusters.

TX14 sits closer to the edge than its reputation suggests. The district is nearly evenly split between White voters and voters of color, with a strong Black population concentrated in Jefferson County. A roughly 11-point swing is challenging but not absurd, especially if Black turnout surges and coastal working-class voters are mobilized around environmental risk, hurricane response failures, and petrochemical pollution. Weber’s extremism gives Democrats a real contrast here. With resources and disciplined messaging, TX14 is not a pipe dream.

Three Democrats are on the ballot. Richard Davis, Thurman Bartie, and Konstantinos Vogiatzis.

TX17 - Pete Sessions.

Sessions was identified in reporting as the unnamed “Congressman 1” referenced in the indictment of two Rudy Giuliani associates (Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman), part of the broader Ukraine pressure/influence ecosystem of the Trump era.

He’s always been dirty. And he doesn’t live in his district.

TX17 is structurally Republican, but it is not immune. Sessions’ margins have depended on weak Democratic participation in Waco, particularly among younger voters and Black communities. McLennan County is the anchor of the district, and when turnout there lags, rural counties dominate the outcome. A competitive path exists.

Drive turnout around Baylor and Waco, mobilize Black church networks, and persuade Republicans who are exhausted by chaos, corruption, and election denial. In a wave environment, this seat becomes genuinely competitive.

There are three Democrats on the ballot. J. Gordon-Mitchell, Casey Shephard, and Milah Flores.

TX24 - Beth Van Duyne.

Honestly, I feel like we've talked about Beth Van Duyne already so much. She’s a Fox News darling, and she’s on TV every other day being a hate monger.

TX24 is one of the clearest flip opportunities on the board. This is a fast-changing Dallas suburban district with a college-educated electorate and growing racial diversity. These are exactly the voters who have been breaking away from MAGA politics since 2018. Van Duyne’s record (January 6 included) is a liability, not an asset. With money, a credible candidate, and sustained turnout, this district is highly flippable.

The three Democrats running to flip this seat are TJ Ware, Kevin Burge, and Jon Burchwald.

TX25 - Roger Williams.

Call me silly, or old-fashioned, or stuck-up, or whatever you want to call it, but I don’t think wealthy people should be in the government presiding over the lives of the working class. Especially, if they are Republicans, a very anti-working political party.

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Maybe you think it’s not a big deal. Perhaps you trust it. But when the minimum wage is still $7.25 an hour, and there are over a million unsheltered people in America, it makes me uncomfortable.

TX25 is the closest seat on paper to flipping among this group. It’s a Fort Worth–anchored district made up of fast-growing exurbs and smaller rural counties, and it’s nearly evenly split by race. Republicans win it when turnout drops off among younger voters and Latino voters, and when suburban swing voters default to “red” out of habit. In a strong Democratic environment, flipping TX25 comes down to two things. Aggressive turnout operations in the exurbs and targeted persuasion of ticket-splitting suburban voters who are increasingly allergic to chaos, extremism, and anti-democratic politics. With the right candidate, this seat is absolutely in play.

Two Democrats are on the ballot. William Marks and Dione Sims.

TX27 - Michael Cloud.

Michael Cloud is in the Freedom Caucus. 🤮 He’s also a Christian Nationalist.

TX27 may be the clearest example of why low Democratic turnout distorts reality. The district is majority-minority by population, with Latino voters making up roughly 40%. Cloud survives because turnout has always been weak, not because his politics are popular. In a cycle where Democrats are energized and invest seriously in Spanish-language organizing and economic populism, a 10-point swing is not only possible, it’s likely. Cloud is personally weak, ideologically extreme, and badly positioned for a high-turnout election. This is a very real flip opportunity.

Three Democrats are on the ballot here. “Stock” Castro-Mendoza, Tanya Lloyd, and Wayne Raasch.

TX31 - John Carter.

Did you ever see that 90s movie Striptease with Demi Moore? I want to tell you that this character was based on John Carter.

But unfortunately, considering that movie was 30 years ago, I’m sure John Carter bases his personality and fashion style off of the fictional Congressman in Striptease, played by Burt Reynolds. And if you’ve heard the man speak for more than five minutes, you’re now like, “Oh yeah, that totally makes sense.”

TX31 is tougher than TX24 but follows the same suburban logic. The district is younger, more educated, and increasingly diverse, and Carter looks more out of step every cycle. Flipping this seat requires both persuasion and turnout, winning moderates while mobilizing younger families and new residents. An 11-point swing is ambitious but well within the realm of possibility in a wave year. This is a top-tier strategic target.

On the ballot are Justin Early and Stuart Whitlow.

TX36 - Brian Babin.

Besides being a BIG, FAT LIAR, Babin was one of the members communicating with Meadows in the post-election pressure campaign.

TX36 is difficult but not hopeless. Babin benefits from low turnout and the absence of sustained investment, not broad support. Flipping this seat would require serious resources, particularly around environmental justice, healthcare access, and economic fairness. In a strong Democratic cycle, Babin becomes vulnerable, but this is an expensive fight that only makes sense if Democrats commit to showing up everywhere, not just where it’s easy.

Two Democrats are on the ballot. Doug Alan Rogers and Rhonda Hart.

January 6 was the predictable outcome of years of lies, radicalization, and power-hoarding by people who were willing to break democracy rather than accept defeat.

And five years later, the most dangerous part isn’t the mob that stormed the Capitol. It’s the fact that many of the people who enabled it, justified it, and tried to finish the job from inside Congress are still there.

These Republicans made a choice. They chose Trump over the Constitution. They chose power over voters. They chose lies over law. And then they doubled down, over and over again, through election denial, authoritarian foreign policy, attacks on workers, attacks on immigrants, attacks on LGBTQ+ people, attacks on climate science, and attacks on the very idea that government should work for anyone but the wealthy and connected.

Democracy survives when people remember, organize, and refuse to normalize betrayal. Some of these races are about flipping seats this year. Others are about forcing accountability, draining resources, building infrastructure, and making sure these men never get to rewrite what they did.

Every one of these Republicans has already shown us who they are. The only remaining question is whether we let them keep power anyway or whether this is the year Texas finally starts taking its democracy back.

• February 2, 2026: Last Day to Register to Vote

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