Talarico claims Texas Senate seat, ending GOP hold on statewide offices
The Austin representative defeated Attorney General Ken Paxton, marking the first time a Democrat won a statewide Texas office in 30 years.
By Rafael Collins ·
Texas politics shifted on November 3 as the Associated Press called the U.S. Senate race for Democratic state Rep. James Talarico. The victory ends the Republican Party's three decade control over all statewide offices in the state. Talarico defeated incumbent state Attorney General Ken Paxton in a contest that drew heavy national attention and spending.
Talarico held a wide lead in fundraising for most of the year. Conservative super PACs allied with Paxton spent heavily on advertising in the final two months to close the gap. The race became a focal point for President Trump, who attacked Talarico at rallies across the country and used him as a stand in for the Democratic Party.
Talarico is a four term state lawmaker from Austin. He first gained prominence in 2018 by winning a heavily Republican House district that had voted for Donald Trump two years earlier. A former San Antonio middle school teacher and Presbyterian seminarian, Talarico focused his campaign on education. He strongly opposed efforts to inject religion into the public school system, including a law requiring the display of a Protestant translation of the Ten Commandments in classrooms.
Paxton had never lost a race since entering the Texas House of Representatives in 2002. He secured the Republican nomination by defeating incumbent Sen. John Cornyn in a primary runoff, aided by a last minute endorsement from President Trump. Paxton expressed concern that the president's dipping popularity could hurt his chances after Trump campaigned for him at the Republican midterm convention in Dallas in September.
The race featured intense media attention for Talarico following a July 2025 interview on The Joe Rogan Experience podcast. A subsequent February 2026 interview for The Late Show with Stephen Colbert went viral on YouTube after CBS declined to broadcast it. Paxton battled negative perceptions of his record, including a 2023 impeachment by the Texas House and subsequent acquittal by the Senate, as well as his ongoing divorce from state Sen. Angela Paxton.
The loss makes Paxton the first Republican to lose a Texas Senate seat since the 1990s. Talarico's win represents a major setback for Republicans and President Trump, who poured millions of dollars into the race. The result confirms a trend of Democratic gains in Texas statewide races after a long period of Republican dominance.
