Tuesday’s historic election heatwave, which has Democrats in control positions in the US Senate, House of Representatives, and many state houses and legislatures, could have significant implications for the national horse industry and in several key states. The industry leaders I spoke to all maintained a general optimism that changes would be for the better.
It starts in Congress, where the Democrats have swept both the House and the Senate in their favor.
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Two pieces of legislation, the Save Forgotten Horses (SAFE) Act and the Fair Bet Act, both have a chance of passage after the midterms and could be included in the anticipated lame duck session, which begins on November 9. Like the passage of the Health and Safety Act in December 2020, they could be adapted into the Fund, Food, and National Security Act of 2026 or any state funding bill. A safe act would prohibit the slaughter of horses in the United States or the transportation of horses for this purpose. The Fair Bet Act would restore the 100 percent deduction for gambling losses that was reduced to 90 percent in 2025 in the passage of the Republican-sponsored One Big Fair Bet Act bill. Both bills have bipartisan support and have advanced through legislative committees. The National Racing Association and other industry organizations support both bills.
“The full implementation of betting losses should be done now in the lame duck session,” said NTRA CEO and President Tom Rooney. “It’s the Republicans’ last chance to get something for the President.”
Rooney said he met with the chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee two weeks ago, who said there was no reason why the Fair Bet Act could not be included in a broader package of bills.
“The Act is safer moving forward with Democrats in control of Congress,” Rooney added. “Included in the transportation bill this year, it has been acquired until it was 20 years since its first introduction. Unfortunately, the major bill did not move in the House.”
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Democrats are unlikely to repeal the 100 percent property tax cuts that were included in the One Big Specious Bill, congressional observers have indicated. That legislation, which allows business owners to deduct the full cost of purchased horses and equipment, was made permanent in the 2025 legislation. Bonus cuts were introduced in the stimulus package passed by Congress in 2002, but allowed for varying levels of deductions that had to be approved each year. They ranged from 30 percent to 100 percent, making it difficult for business owners to make long-term plans. 100 percent bonus discounts are widely believed to be an important contribution to the strength of the venous blood market in the US
Among the horse racing states, Texas has seen the biggest shakeup since Tuesday’s election, and the turnover from Republican to Democratic legislators in nearly every key executive position — governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, comptroller, agriculture commissioner — has left many in the horse industry scratching their heads and searching Wikipedia biographies. No one I spoke with in Texas predicted this kind of slide from the world of Democrats, who have been part of the state for less than a decade.
“I don’t know what (superintendent-designate) Gina Hinojosa thinks about the horse industry,” one Texas racing official who asked not to be named told me. “And to be honest, I’ve never heard of our new ambassador.”
That would be Vicki Goodwin, who will occupy what is considered one of the most powerful lieutenant governors in the US Unlike in most states, where the lieutenant governor is mainly a ceremonial title, the Texas lieutenant governor controls the legislative agenda and appoints, among other things, members and chairs. It won’t be long before every Texan knows his name.
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The present Gov. Greg Abbott and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick was thought to be safe to win their fourth term, but both were voted out of office in this national Democratic wave. Ken Paxton, who had the first Texas attorney general election in 2014, but was plagued by scandals (pushed by his party in 2023), opted to run for the US Senate this year and was beaten by new lawmaker James Talarico.
That left the office of attorney general open, and Democratic legislator Nathan Johnson defeated Republican candidate Mayes Middleton.
This is a long-winded way of saying the Texas career industry is dealing with a whole new line of elected officials. And the industry has a lot on its plate.
The Texas Cavaliers did not do well under the leadership of Abbott and Patrick. When the Texas Racing Commission decided in 2014 to approve historic horse racing (HHR) at Texas tracks, state officials threatened to withhold funding for the commission, which would effectively shut down racetracks. The commission later reversed course, finding no hope of additional revenue from the HHR, which had been instrumental in increasing the financial support of horse racing in Arkansas, Kentucky, Virginia and Wyoming.
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Abbot appointed Robert C. Pate, a former judge whose son had become a lieutenant governor, as chairman of the Texas Racing Commission. Amy Cook has been hired as the Careers Commission’s executive director, and has led the regulatory body through a tumultuous four years ahead of the 2025 race. It was at the time that the Texas Racing Commission refused to recognize the National Integrity and Safety Authority as a national regulator, effectively cutting the Texas Thoroughbred brand off the track at the same time. That state of Texas is weakened, although the support of the Horse Industry Escrow Account diverts funds from public taxes on horse products (feed, tack, etc.) to float the bag level. But no HIEA funding goes to the stadium.
Paxton, as attorney general, filed a lawsuit earlier this year against Churchill Downs Inc. filed, insisting that it would not accept bets from Texas residents before the deposit, even though the CDI case before the United States appeals surface suggested that the betting system was legal in states like Texas, which the law did not expressly allow.
Top-line items for Texas racing are finding ways to renovate the interstate simultaneously from their famous tracks, revisit historic horse racing, and eliminate barriers to ADW.
Because these newly appointed officials are largely unknown, it is anyone’s guess whether they will help. But surely it cannot be much worse.
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Finally, the former Sen. Amy Klobuchar has been selected as the new governor of Minnesota to replace Tim Walz. Both Democrats, Walz’s two-term run for president did not do favors, and Klobuchar’s election is seen as an opportunity for the industry to mend relations with the state’s top official. Similar to efforts in Texas to approve HHR betting, the Minnesota Racing Commission was disapproved after accepting a 2024 vote to approve the machines. Legislation was quickly passed to make HHR illegal in the state, and shortly thereafter Walz appointed two Native American tribal leaders to the race commission as a slap in the face to the race industry.
Like California, Arizona and other states with tribal casinos, Native Americans in Minnesota have a lot of political clout, especially with the Democratic-Farm-Labor Party, which has firm control of the House and Senate. Minnesota racing industry leaders have had an ongoing dialogue with Klobuchar and believe she is committed to finding solutions to help the industry without harming the tribes.
There are no guarantees to help the new leadership in Congress and in the state houses of Texas and Minnesota, but the consensus seems to be that they can’t hurt.
This is my opinion from the eighth pole.
This story was first published by Paulick Report on Nov. 5 2026, when first in the church News section Add the Paulck Report as Preferred Source by clicking here.