Changes

In polling which took place before the primaries closed, he polled roughly even with Texas Attorney General [[Ken Paxton]] (who finished second in the GOP primary and headed to the runoff), but behind Congressman [[Wesley Hunt]] (who finished 3rd) and even worse against Cornyn (who had the most votes).  Later polling, after the primary, showed Talarico ahead of Paxton by margins outside the [[margin of error]] and ahead of Cornyn as well (however, the polling was done by a Democrat-leaning polling firm).  After Paxton won his runoff race against Cornyn, polling showed Talarico +3 over Paxton with Libertarian candidate Ted Brown at 1%; however, the polls showed a likely unreliable figure of 30% of Cornyn voters planning to vote for Talarico in the general election (notwithstanding Cornyn's public announcement that he will support the entire Republican ticket - including Paxton - in November).

In polling which took place before the primaries closed, he polled roughly even with Texas Attorney General [[Ken Paxton]] (who finished second in the GOP primary and headed to the runoff), but behind Congressman [[Wesley Hunt]] (who finished 3rd) and even worse against Cornyn (who had the most votes).  Later polling, after the primary, showed Talarico ahead of Paxton by margins outside the [[margin of error]] and ahead of Cornyn as well (however, the polling was done by a Democrat-leaning polling firm).  After Paxton won his runoff race against Cornyn, polling showed Talarico +3 over Paxton with Libertarian candidate Ted Brown at 1%; however, the polls showed a likely unreliable figure of 30% of Cornyn voters planning to vote for Talarico in the general election (notwithstanding Cornyn's public announcement that he will support the entire Republican ticket - including Paxton - in November).

Talarico's views on race have been criticized.<ref>[https://freebeacon.com/democrats/allyship-in-action-james-talarico-can-prove-hes-not-racist-by-ending-his-campaign-against-black-excellence/ Allyship in Action: James Talarico Can Prove He’s Not Racist by Ending His Campaign Against Black Excellence], Andrew Stiles, ''Washington Free Beacon'', February 3, 2026</ref><ref>[https://slaynews.com/jasmine-crockett-refuses-back-texas-democrat-primary-defeat/ Jasmine Crockett Refuses to Back Texas Democrat After Primary Defeat], Nick R. Hamilton, Slay News, June 22, 2026.</ref>

Talarico's views on race have been criticized.<ref>[https://freebeacon.com/democrats/allyship-in-action-james-talarico-can-prove-hes-not-racist-by-ending-his-campaign-against-black-excellence/ Allyship in Action: James Talarico Can Prove He’s Not Racist by Ending His Campaign Against Black Excellence], Andrew Stiles, ''Washington Free Beacon'', February 3, 2026</ref><ref>[https://slaynews.com/jasmine-crockett-refuses-back-texas-democrat-primary-defeat/ Jasmine Crockett Refuses to Back Texas Democrat After Primary Defeat], Nick R. Hamilton, Slay News, June 22, 2026.</ref>

Talarico is a former [[Presbyterian]] seminarian who is the grandson of a [[Baptist]] minister. Talarico often refers to the [[Bible]] to try to justify his [[Leftist]] political positions. But Talarico favors expanding [[gambling]] in [[Texas]], particularly [[casino]]s.

Talarico is a former [[Presbyterian]] seminarian who is the grandson of a [[Baptist]] minister. Talarico often refers to the [[Bible]] to try to justify his [[Leftist]] political positions. However, he favors expanding [[gambling]] in [[Texas]] (particularly [[casino]]s) in hopes that it will bring more jobs amongst the [[AI job crisis]].

{{cquote|Talarico’s positions are discordant with many other [[Christian]]s, [[progressive]] or conservative. ... Talarico has received tens of thousands of dollars from a political action committee (PAC) backed by GOP megadonor Miriam Adelson. Although Adelson is perhaps best known for her Israel advocacy, she and her late husband’s wealth is tied up in casinos.<ref>https://www.levernews.com/the-bible-thumper-and-the-billionaire/</ref>}}

{{cquote|Talarico’s positions are discordant with many other [[Christian]]s, [[progressive]] or conservative. ... Talarico has received tens of thousands of dollars from a political action committee (PAC) backed by GOP megadonor Miriam Adelson. Although Adelson is perhaps best known for her Israel advocacy, she and her late husband’s wealth is tied up in casinos.<ref>https://www.levernews.com/the-bible-thumper-and-the-billionaire/</ref>}}