AUSTIN, Texas — Texas Sen. John Cornyn, outperforming President Donald Trump in a once bright red state, won a fourth term Tuesday over Democrat MJ Hegar.
At about 8:20 p.m., Hegar called Cornyn to concede, said Cornyn spokesman Travis Considine.
Cornyn grabbed another six years in Washington by reestablishing the GOP's dominance in suburbs where Joe Biden this year and Beto O'Rourke in 2018 made incursions.
Cornyn ran strongly in places such as Collin, Denton and Tarrant counties in North Texas.
Hegar, who'd run a strong congressional race in Central Texas two years ago before losing to longtime GOP Rep. John Carter, spent precious time this year in a protracted struggle to put away several Democratic contenders in this year's Senate contest. She then had money problems, making it hard in a state with 20 media markets to carve Cornyn down to size.
Hegar, a decorated Air Force rescue helicopter pilot, though, appeared to be closing the gap last month. She was buoyed by late contributions to her campaign and outside groups' help.
Still, Cornyn, quiet in demeanor, silver-maned and frequently described as a "senator from Central Casting," pushed ahead with a dual-track message that he was "thoughtful" while Hegar was "liberal" and a pawn of national Democratic leaders.
Cornyn, 68, a former judge and state attorney general, closed with effective 30-second TV spots in which women spoke to camera about his effectiveness in passing bills to curtail teen vaping and a backlog of lab testing of rape kits.
Hegar, 44, said in a written statement late Tuesday that she was proud of her achievement in coming from obscurity_"having no statewide profile," as she put it_to giving Cornyn a stout challenge.
Hegar said she was able to "completely erase Senator Cornyn's 14 to 1 cash-on-hand advantage and turn the tables on Cornyn, ... making this race the toughest reelection Senator Cornyn had faced in 18-years."
She thanked supporters for helping her send a "message to a previously safe senator that he answers to us."
Cornyn was expected to make remarks on a Zoom call late Tuesday.
