Texan James Talarico: is he the face of Democrats’ 2026 US midterm hopes?
The Texas Senate race holds implications for which party will control the chamber after the midterms
James Talarico barely mentioned Donald Trump when he finally got to give his victory speech on Wednesday night as Democrats’ nominee for US Senate in Texas.
But the 36-year-old state lawmaker is now a frontman for the left’s opposition to Trump, not just in his own state but around the country. With his victory over US congresswoman Jasmine Crockett, the state lawmaker from Austin will test whether a smiling message of unity and change is enough to answer voters’ frustrations amid discord at home and now a war abroad.
The Texas Senate race holds implications for which party will control the chamber after the midterms and whether there could be a check on Trump’s sprawling agenda
“We’re done being divided. We’re done being played,” Talarico said, several times invoking his Christian faith and promising a “politics of love”.
“We’re not just trying to win an election. We are trying to fundamentally change our politics,” he said, adding that he’s “tired of being told to hate my neighbour.”
Talarico acknowledged that his immediate challenge is consolidating support from Crockett’s supporters who flocked to the congresswoman’s unapologetically pugilistic approach to Trump and Republicans. He told them: “I hope to earn your trust”.