Politics 4 min read By Alice Ashford
Talarico Rallies Texas Voters Against $158m Republican Spending Blitz
Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico has cast his campaign as a David-versus-Goliath fight against the ultrawealthy, as federal filings reveal Elon Musk gave $158 million to the Senate Leadership Fund backing his Republican rival Ken Paxton.
Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico has framed his campaign as a fight against the ultrawealthy, telling a packed rally in Texas that voters are his weapon against the millions being spent to defeat him. The state lawmaker is facing more than $158 million in outside spending by Republican leadership and Elon Musk, the world's richest man.
Speaking under bright lights in San Marcos, south of Austin, Talarico invoked the biblical story of David and Goliath. He said David may not have had Goliath's strength, but he had a slingshot. «You are my slingshot,» he told supporters. «We are going up against our own Goliaths.» He did not mention Musk or the spending against him by name.
The rhetoric fits Talarico's broader political message, which casts politics not as right versus left but as the ultrawealthy versus everyone else. He is attempting to become the first Democrat to win statewide in Texas in more than 30 years. His own campaign has raised record amounts in one of the most expensive and competitive Senate races in the country.
Federal campaign spending filings showed on Thursday that Musk contributed $158 million to the Senate Leadership Fund. That group gave $158 million to Texas PAC, the largest contributor to the campaign of Republican candidate Ken Paxton. Musk also provided $10 million to Lone Star Liberty PAC, a group that supports Paxton.
The scale of the outside spending underscores how seriously Republicans are taking the threat of losing a flagship GOP state. President Donald Trump has made several trips to Texas to rally for Paxton. The outcome will help determine which party controls the Senate during Trump's final two years in office, making it either smooth sailing for the president or a period of investigations and opposition.
Talarico's rise has shifted the national conversation. Initially seen as just the latest Democrat to give the party hope of flipping Texas, only for that hope to fade on election day, he is now viewed as a real contender. His success is partly attributed to voters' concerns about Paxton, who was impeached by his own party in the Texas legislature over corruption questions and later acquitted.
At the rally, Talarico focused on affordability, arguing that billionaires and corrupt politicians have rigged the system. The message resonated with younger voters in attendance. «They think that they can buy us, and that they can essentially be the kings of the country,» said Kaitlyn Johnson, a 29-year-old bartender. She said she earns decent money but sees no prospect of buying a house soon.
Talarico has walked a careful, deliberately nonpartisan path across Texas, from the major metropolitan areas that already lean Democratic to the border towns that flipped red last election and the rural Republican high plains and desert. He has distanced himself from former President Joe Biden's administration and from his own party. Progressive Senator Bernie Sanders is due to visit Texas this month, but he will not share a stage with Talarico.
The San Marcos rally followed a nine-day absence from public view after Talarico contracted the flu. His disappearance sparked online conspiracy theories, including a false claim that he was at a mental health treatment centre in Ohio. The claim, shared by conservative social media influencers, quickly fell apart under scrutiny.
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