During the midterm elections Tuesday, Democrat James Talarico became the talk of Texas with his win for the Senate. But the Lone Star State also elected its first Democratic governor since 1994, with Gina Hinojosa beating incumbent Gov. Greg Abbott. Here’s what was happening in the country and around the world the last time Texas had a Democratic governor:
Pop culture events
- Swedish pop group Ace of Base had the most popular song of 1994 with “The Sign,” which topped the Billboard Hot 100 for six nonconsecutive weeks.
- “Forrest Gump” was the top-grossing movie at the box office, with $329.7 million (about $748 million today). It was followed by “The Lion King” in second place. “Forrest Gump” went on to win Best Picture at the Oscars.
- The hit sitcom “Friends” premiered in September 1994.
- Kurt Cobain died by suicide in April.
People were interested in these podcasts
Sports
- The Tonya-Harding and Nancy Kerrigan scandal unfolded at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships.
- The Dallas Cowboys won Super Bowl XXVIII against the Buffalo Bills at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta. The halftime show featured country singers, including Travis Tritt, Clint Black and Wynonna Judd.
- The World Series was canceled that year due to a players’ strike, marking the second time the MLB championship had been skipped since 1904.
Technology
- Jeff Bezos founded the company Cadabra, which would later become Amazon.
- Sony released the original PlayStation in Japan.
- Yahoo began in early 1994.
- Dutch engineer Jaap Haartsen laid the groundwork for what would become Bluetooth technology.
World politics
Advertisement
- The Rwandan genocide of Tutsis by Hutus began.
- The Nobel Peace Prize was won by Yasser Arafat, Shimon Peres and Yitzhak Rabin for signing the Oslo Accords in Washington, which aimed for reconciliation between Israelis and Palestinians.
- IRA declared a ceasefire in Northern Ireland.
- Nelson Mandela was elected president of South Africa.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.