Democratic Texas state Rep. James Talarico announced his bid for U.S. Senate on Tuesday, vying to take down former Texas Democratic Rep. Colin Allred who is making a second Senate run following a failed 2024 bid.
Talarico, a Presbyterian seminary student who once argued that “God is nonbinary” in defense of transgenderism, starts the race as an underdog candidate but could mount a serious challenge to Allred, according to recent polling. The aspiring preacher and senator has also sought to distance himself from national Democrats — a sign of the party’s toxic brand in Texas — and has repeatedly declined to back Democratic New York Sen. Chuck Schumer for remaining the Democratic leader in the upper chamber.
“If the people of Texas entrust me with this responsibility, I’ll sit down with all the candidates for majority leader to hear about their plan to curb the influence of the ultra-wealthy in our politics and center the Democratic Party’s priorities around working people,” Talarico told Semafor in an interview regarding his decision to keep Schumer at arm’s length.
Talarico, 36, has served in the Texas House of Representatives since 2018 and previously worked as a public school teacher. Though he has never run statewide before, the Texas Democrat has built up his name recognition by having fledthe state in protest of Republicans’ mid-decade redistricting efforts and landing an appearance on Joe Rogan’s podcast in July. He is pursuing a Master of Divinity at Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary and holds degrees from the University of Texas at Austin and Harvard University.
Talarico has frequently called for new blood in the Democratic Party, whose approval rating has sunk to its lowest point in more than three decades.
“I think what I bring is something a little different,” Talarico told NBC News. “I think the country is looking for a reset in the Democratic Party. They’re looking for something new, something fresh, something different and I think that’s what I can provide.”
The Democratic nominee will face long odds to unseating Republican Texas Sen. John Cornyn, who is running for his fifth Senate term. Cornyn is engaged in a fierce primary challenge against Republican Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and the race has narrowed over the past several weeks, according to recent polling.
A Texas Democrat has not won a statewide election in the Lone Star State since the 1994.
Perennial Democratic Texas candidate Beto O’Rourke has not ruled out entering the contested primary race. Texas astronaut Terry Virts is also running in the Democratic primary.
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