Texas State Rep. Candy Noble, the Republican lawmaker who spearheaded the state's law requiring the Ten Commandments to be displayed in every public school classroom, lost her seat this week — and atheists and non-Christians who objected to lawmakers elevating one religion over others were anything but quiet about it.

According to the Friendly Atheist, Noble, first elected in 2018, “undoubtedly expected to sail to victory in her Trump +17 district.” That notation refers to Trump's 17-point margin in the district, meaning Noble's defeat came in territory considered safely Republican. Coming off President Donald Trump's recent victory on the national level, Noble filed a Ten Commandments bill in 2023 and again in 2025 — the two-year gap reflects the Texas Legislature's schedule, since lawmakers convene in regular session only once every two years, making 2025 her first opportunity to refile after the initial attempt fell short. On her second attempt, the Republican-dominated Texas Legislature passed the measure and the governor signed it into law, kicking off litigation that remains underway today.

When the bill was first introduced, Democrats had “very little recourse to stop it,” the Friendly Atheist reported, beyond arguing the measure was pointless. Critics observed at the time that no potential school shooter had ever been proven to cancel an attack after reading “Thou shalt NOT kill,” and that the mandate effectively ordered non-Christians to stop being non-Christians.

During a House Public Education Committee meeting, James Talarico — now a senator-elect — took Noble to task, pointing out inconsistencies with the commandments themselves.

“Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy,” said Talarico, quoting Commandment No. 4. “Are you aware the legislature is scheduled to meet this Saturday?”

“I am aware of that,” said Noble, defending her bill before the committee.

“So that would be violating the Ten Commandments,” he pressed, to which Noble admitted: “I contend that that is a hard … you're right.”

Critics also noted that the Legislature debated the bill on a Saturday and then scheduled its final vote for Sunday, described as the Christian Sabbath.

“It's ironic, isn't it?” said Noble when confronted with that argument.

“It was not ‘ironic.’ It was deeply hypocritical. Republicans didn't … [care] about obeying the Commandments. They just wanted to shove Christianity down everyone's throat,” the Friendly Atheist opined.

The bill later became law. According to the Friendly Atheist, it was struck down by a lower court judge, upheld by the entire Fifth Circuit — the full bench of the federal appeals court — and now awaits a decision from the Supreme Court. That review proceeds independently of the election: the Supreme Court's eventual ruling, not whoever holds Noble's former seat, will determine the classroom mandate's fate.

The candidate who ousted Noble is schoolteacher Angie Carraway, who ran a campaign centered on undoing the private school vouchers that have been chipping away at public school funding across Texas. With the law's author gone from the chamber, any future effort to repeal the display requirement would fall to the lawmakers who remain.

“Noble lost to a woman whose religious and career profile is eerily similar to Talarico's. Seems appropriate,” the Friendly Atheist said. “Whether the Ten Commandments law will be repealed by the new legislature is anyone's guess. But the election was a reminder that, even in Texas, people are fed up with the sort of religious extremism we've seen from people like Noble.”

“Good riddance,” the outlet concluded.