Democrat Texas Representative James Talarico took the 2026 primary election by storm after defeating fellow U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett. Now that he’s received the Democratic nomination to run for Senate, his Republican opponent has yet to be called. After Attorney General Ken Paxton and Senator John Cornyn‘s race ended up requiring a runoff, voters wondered who Talarico would run against this spring.
Talarico argued for his spot on the ticket by pointing to the “biggest divide in this country” being “top vs. bottom” rather than “left vs. right.”
“Billionaires want us looking left and right at each other instead of looking up at them,” Talarico explains on his website for why he is running for Senate. “The people at the top work so hard to keep us angry and divided because our unity is a threat to their wealth and power. So their cable news networks and their social media algorithms tear us apart. They divide us by party, by race, by gender, by religion so we don’t notice they’re defunding our schools, gutting our healthcare, and cutting taxes for themselves and their rich friends. It’s the oldest strategy in the world: divide and conquer. But we will not be conquered.”
As Talarico vies to help Democrats flip Texas to blue, get updates on who he’ll run against here.
How Old Is James Talarico?
Talarico is currently 36. He will turn 37 on May 17, just days before the Republican runoff election takes place.
How Much Did James Talarico Win the Democratic Primary Election by?
Talarico beat Crockett by nearly 7 percent of the votes. He received 52.8 percent, and she got 45.9 percent.
Who Will James Talarico Run Against?
Talarico’s Republican opponent has still not been determined. The runoff election between Paxton and Cornyn will take place on May 26.
Although Cornyn’s chances appeared to be slim at the start of the primary, the primary election results showed that he had the upper hand, even just slightly.
Who Is Winning: Ken Paxton or John Cornyn?
Though there’s still a slim margin between the Republican candidates, Cornyn received the most votes by just over one percent. Paxton got 40.7 percent, while Cornyn received 41.9 percent of the votes.
