Texas

James Talarico's Fake Olive Branch to Republicans

The Democratic candidate dresses up a negative, partisan appeal as genuine moderation.

Christian Britschgi | 5.27.2026 2:15 PM

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(Bob Daemmrich/ZUMAPRESS/Newscom)

To read some of the press coverage, one would think the biggest winner of yesterday's Texas Republican primary runoff is James Talarico, the Democratic Senate candidate. He now gets to run against the scandal-plagued Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton as opposed to the steady old-hand incumbent Sen. John Cornyn (R–Texas). 

Talarico himself wasted no time in seeking advantage in Cornyn's loss to Paxton by issuing an X post saying that the senator's supporters are welcome in his campaign. 

I want to thank Senator John Cornyn for his years representing our state. 

We don't agree on everything, but we both still believe in public service.

To Senator Cornyn's supporters: you have a place in our campaign.

— James Talarico (@jamestalarico) May 27, 2026

This got a lot of praise on social media from liberals, who are once again indulging the hope that, with a compelling candidate of their own and a deeply flawed GOP nominee on the other side, Texas might at last turn blue.  

Smart tweet from a smart politician https://t.co/cWWL2eX8Zo

— Mehdi Hasan (@mehdirhasan) May 27, 2026

This is how it's done. https://t.co/K6qI1PC6h6

— Charlotte Clymer 🇺🇦 (@cmclymer) May 27, 2026

Just a reminder, Beto only lost by 2 https://t.co/RY8mBzdVBS

—........

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