State Rep. James Talarico (D-Austin) has entered the Democratic primary for the U.S. Senate seat now held by Republican John Cornyn. Talarico plans to hold a campaign kick-off rally Tuesday evening in his hometown of Round Rock.
Talarico launched his campaign with a video ad Tuesday morning, leaning into his background as an educator.
"We're underdogs in this fight. We're going up against those billionaire mega-donors and their puppet politicians. We're going up against a rigged system. And we're going up against a lot of money," Talarico said. "But I'm a former middle school teacher, I don't scare easily,"
Talarico, at age 36, is one of the youngest candidates ever to run for the Senate from Texas. He recently graduated with a Master of Divinity degree from the Austin Theological Seminary. Talarico leaned into that theological training in his launch ad.
"Two thousand years ago," Talarico said, "when the powerful few rigged the system, that barefoot rabbi walked into the seat of power and flipped over the tables of injustice. To those who love this state, to those who love this country, to those who love our neighbors: it's time to start flipping tables."
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Over the past several months, Talarico has claimed the national spotlight several times — first for his opposition to a Texas Republican bill requiring the display of the Ten Commandments in public schools, then as a guest on The Joe Rogan Experience, and most recently as one of more than 50 Democratic state representatives who broke quorum to try to prevent the passage of the Republican congressional redistricting plan.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is seeking a court ruling to have Talarico's seat declared vacant as a result of his role in the quorum break. Paxton himself is running for Senate and locked in a close Republican primary battle with the incumbent Cornyn.
Talarico joins a Democratic field that includes former congressman and unsuccessful 2024 Senate candidate Colin Allred, along with former NASA astronaut Terry Virts.
"I've never taken anything for granted in life or politics, and this campaign is no exception," Allred said in a statement responding to Talarico's entry into the race.
A recent poll by Texas Southern University showed Allred with a significantly higher favorability rating among Democratic primary voters, but the poll also suggested Talarico’s low name recognition relative to Allred means he has room to improve his standing.
“Democrats aren't fully sold yet on Colin Allred this time around, so the race is still pretty wide open,” University of Houston political science professor Brandon Rottinghaus said. “Talarico entered the race because he thinks he can win, and there's certainly an opportunity to do so.”
Mark Jones, a political science fellow at Rice University’s Baker Institute, said that today’s announcement is the beginning of a very long march for Talarico. He noted the last time a Democrat won statewide office in Texas was more than 30 years ago.
“He first has to defeat Colin Allred in the March 2026 Democratic primary and simultaneously hope that Ken Paxton defeats John Cornyn in the Republican primary,” Jones said. “And then looking towards October, he has to hope that the economy isn’t doing well, [President] Donald Trump’s approval ratings are low, and the Democratic attack ads on Ken Paxton bear fruit with moderate Republican voters who are voting for [Gov.] Greg Abbott, but in the Senate race would be willing to flip to James Talarico.”
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