The Candidate

James is an eighth-generation Texan, former middle-school teacher, and Presbyterian seminarian. As a state representative he led the fight against the billionaire mega-donors and puppet politicians who have taken over Texas. Now he's running for U.S. Senate to take that fight to Washington and win power back for working people.

In his own words:

“There's something broken in America. Our economy is broken. Our politics are broken. Even our relationships with each other feel broken. That's because the most powerful people in the world want it that way.

The biggest divide in this country is not left vs. right. It's top vs. bottom. Billionaires want us looking left and right at each other instead of looking up at them… They divide us by party, by race, by gender, by religion so we don't notice they're defunding our schools, gutting our healthcare, and cutting taxes for themselves and their rich friends. It's the oldest strategy in the world: divide and conquer.

But we will not be conquered.”

Hear Talarico's speech at the Texas Democratic Convention, June 27 in Corpus Christi. For more background, here's an interview with Talarico from last October. And on March 4, the day Jasmine Crockett conceded to him after a hard-fought Democratic primary, Talarico recorded this interview, followed by Simon Rosenberg's analysis of the race to succeed Senator John Cornyn.

And on July 16, this interview with Joe Scarborough. Talarico spent July 4 with Willie Nelson — while Paxton was photographed with “someone” in London as the rest of us turned out for our most epic No Kings.

See Talarico questioning the author of the “FURRIES Act,” a MAGA Texas Representative.

The Opponent

Here's a deeper dive into the vulnerabilities of Ken Paxton, Talarico's corrupt Republican opponent, and a discussion of the campaign's theme: “The People vs. Paxton.” In that same TX-35 special, Democrat Johnny Garcia trounced his MAGA opponent 68.8% to 36.2%. Just as in New Mexico, down-ballot races help everyone else — and vice versa.

Heard the one about the state attorney general voting illegally? Yep — that was Paxton, and that was Texas. See it here. And if a short clip isn't enough, here's a lot more.

Meanwhile, Paxton's supporters are showing signs of desperation. The MAGA swagger along the border, with vile defacement promised in Big Bend National Park, is now pulling back to appease TX Republican chances. As if TACO weren't enough, now it's showing up in Texas, where the peeps know what it means.

The Race

Here is the chair of the Texas Democratic Party describing the Talarico / Paxton race as of May 27. Watch for Chair Kendall Scudder, because Texas could become our next blue state — believe it or don't. Texas is not a red state; it is a voter-suppressed state, and that is a condition subject to elections.

A June 30 NYT/Siena poll had Talarico and Paxton tied — in a state Trump won by 14 points. The trend since has been one-directional: August 5 polling shows Talarico pulling marginally ahead of a weak Paxton.

You'd think a Republican who leaves a primary with Senate leadership on his résumé would have a bank full of money to hand his former rival. But Cornyn just can't bring himself to put real money behind Paxton (Axios, July 16), and as of July 29 the New York Times reports that the party's own Senate fundraising group is still refusing to send money to the Paxton campaign. That could change, of course — which is precisely why we shouldn't wait. Normally you couldn't make this stuff up — but then, this is Texas.

Latest Updates

• In Texas, the swing to a Democratic Senator is happening. See it in local reporting: it comes down to 4.7 million votes statewide — fewer than Republicans turned out in 2024 — with Harris County alone worth 750,000–850,000 of them and Hispanic turnout surging in the Rio Grande Valley against Republicans' own mid-decade gerrymander.

The State

Could Texas become the next blue state? Three pieces take up the question — in the New York Times, Forbes, and Vanity Fair. As the NYT puts it: “Texas is one of the most diverse states in the country, and national polls show Democrats surging back in support among young and nonwhite voters — and especially Hispanic voters.”

Politico reported on July 12 that Hispanic voters are swinging hard away from Trump and toward Talarico — angry over immigration enforcement's disruptions to their communities, businesses, and families. The same pattern shows up elsewhere in the electorate: new August 4 polling finds most Black Texas voters backing Talarico over Paxton.

Now a respected polling organization, the Barbara Jordan Public Policy and Research Center at Texas Southern University, has studied three of the five new districts Abbott gerrymandered mid-decade at Trump's request — all designed to shrink Black voters' influence. Despite the meddling, Democrats are ahead in each of the three, and so is Talarico statewide. So, there!

James Talarico: “Fight the system. Not the neighbor.”

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