American Realignment: The Atlantic – Analysis & Impact
- Starr County, Texas, along the Rio Grande, offers insight into the political realignment that propelled Donald Trump to the white House.
- In 2022, a visit to Rio Grande City, the county seat, revealed that local politics, especially school board elections, overshadowed national races.
- Historically, Starr County's politics resembled a patchwork of localized traditions, loosely tied to ideological leanings.These "ancestral" attachments,often based on ethnicity and religion,produced unique results.
In a stunning turn, Starr County, Texas, once a Democratic stronghold, dramatically shifted to support Donald Trump, marking it’s first republican vote in over a century. This pivotal change highlights fading partisan ties and the impact of local issues,particularly school board elections,on voter behavior.The shift reveals a broader political realignment, driven by a populist surge and national polarization as the white working class leans toward the GOP. Nonwhite voters are abandoning long-held partisan loyalties, reflecting a meaningful change in how communities are aligning with parties.This trend, mirrored across the Rio Grande Valley, underscores the weakening social basis for many Democratic majorities. Witness how machine politics and a focus on tangible benefits once shaped this Texas county. News Directory 3’s analysis shows how these dynamics are reshaping the American political landscape.Discover what’s next for Starr County and what this means for the future.
Starr County’s Stunning Shift: Political Realignment in Texas
Updated May 25, 2025
Starr County, Texas, along the Rio Grande, offers insight into the political realignment that propelled Donald Trump to the white House. The heavily Hispanic and economically challenged county dramatically shifted from a 73-point Democratic advantage in 2012 to backing Trump by 16 points in 2024, marking its first Republican vote in 132 years.
In 2022, a visit to Rio Grande City, the county seat, revealed that local politics, especially school board elections, overshadowed national races. This intense focus on local issues is a key factor in Starr County’s rapid political change.
Historically, Starr County’s politics resembled a patchwork of localized traditions, loosely tied to ideological leanings.These “ancestral” attachments,often based on ethnicity and religion,produced unique results. While Hispanics were largely Democratic, the Rio Grande Valley’s one-party rule stood apart from other competitive Hispanic regions in Texas.
Recent realignments, such as the white working class moving toward the GOP and suburbs leaning Democratic, reflect ideological sorting. In 2020 and 2024, this trend extended to nonwhite voters, particularly working-class Hispanics in the Rio Grande Valley.
Starr County’s machine politics, evident in its focus on local elections, made it susceptible to sudden change. Similar to Democratic strongholds in mid-century cities, political dominance stemmed from delivering tangible benefits rather than adhering to liberal ideals. This is reflected in polling data showing that nonwhite Democrats are more moderate than their white counterparts. Ideological differences were once secondary to advancing group interests, but the rise of ideological voting has disrupted this balance.
Ross Barrera, who leads the county’s Republican organization, explained that Rio Grande City is governed by factions resembling old-style political machines. These factions, more influential than formal parties, control school board elections and endorse candidates across party lines. The school district is the largest employer in this economically challenged area, making school board races high-stakes battles for patronage jobs.
In the Rio Grande Valley, voter lists are scrutinized by political figures who distribute jobs. In 2018, nearly all primary voters cast Democratic ballots. One Republican recounted being handed a Democratic ballot and denied a Republican one. With Democrats dominating local offices and uncontested general elections, there was little incentive to vote Republican.
McAllen Mayor Javier Villalobos, a Republican elected in 2021, recalled growing up hearing that democrats were the “party of the poor.” His response was, “We don’t have to be poor.”
The 2020 pandemic disrupted traditional campaigning. A “Trump train” sparked applause from residents, signaling a shift.Trump’s support surged from 19% in 2016 to 58% in 2024. This shift indicates a preference cascade, where crumbling social norms allow voters to switch parties. by demonstrating that neighbors were switching, Republicans gained ground in areas dominated by political machines.
historically, Democratic parties in industrial cities relied on political machines to deliver benefits to working-class and immigrant voters. While machine politics are now viewed negatively, they once protected overlooked voting blocs. Today, social forces, rather than ideological affinity, sustain Democratic majorities in some communities.
Growing polarization is weakening the social basis for Democratic majorities. while Trump’s appeal may be temporary,the realignment of communities to parties that align with their views,particularly on cultural issues,suggests lasting change.
A populist shift, embodied by Donald Trump, prompted many nonwhite voters to abandon long-held partisan loyalties. Without significant changes in how these voters perceive the Democratic Party, they are unlikely to return.
What’s next
The future political landscape of Starr County and similar regions hinges on whether the democratic Party can adapt to the changing priorities and cultural values of its former base, or if the Republican Party can solidify its gains by addressing the specific needs and concerns of these newly acquired voters.