State Rep. James Talarico (D-District 50), Texas’ Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate, returned to public view Friday at the Austin City Limits Music Festival after nine days without a public appearance, ending the most visible part of an absence that drew questions from President Donald Trump, Republican nominee Ken Paxton and political commentators.
As of Saturday morning, no public documentation or named-source reporting substantiates claims that Talarico spent part of his absence in a psychiatric hospital or mental-health facility. The Dallas Express examined those claims Friday after commentator Spencer Pratt cited unnamed sources and Blaze Media host Sara Gonzales described information she had received as unverified.
Talarico’s campaign continues to attribute the absence to influenza. His October 9 reappearance establishes that he has returned to campaigning, but it does not independently establish where he spent each day of the gap or verify the medical care he received.
What Talarico Says Happened
Talarico had planned to appear in person September 30 at the United States Hispanic Business Council’s “In Dialogue: Texas” candidate forum in Edinburg. Instead, he joined by video and said, “I was starting to feel kind of under the weather a few days ago and last night it got so bad that I went to the urgent care here in Dallas, and I was diagnosed with the flu.”
His last scheduled in-person event before the illness was a September 28 New York fundraiser with actor Robert De Niro, reported the New York Post. His ACL appearance became his first public appearance since the September 30 virtual forum.
Campaign spokesman JT Ennis posted video from the festival and wrote, “Hate to disappoint the conspiracy theorists, but James is still alive and meeting with voters at ACL today.” Talarico’s campaign has since said he will resume a full in-person schedule.
CNN and Jubilee Media have scheduled a live town hall with Talarico in Fort Worth for October 14 at 7 p.m. Central. CNN says it also invited Paxton.
Faith, Policy And A Record Of Revisions
Talarico has made Christianity central to his political identity. His campaign says he is “a Presbyterian seminarian studying to become a pastor.” The same platform calls for federal legislation to codify Roe v. Wade and to protect the legality of same-sex marriage.
Those positions, along with Talarico’s earlier statements about sex and Christianity, have prompted scrutiny from Christian leaders and Republicans. The Dallas Express previously documented that Talarico’s longtime Austin congregation, St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church, listed Planned Parenthood Greater Texas among organizations that shared its “vision and goals for the world” and received support through its benevolence budget.
Talarico also previously said “God is non-binary” and argued that there were six biological sexes. He has since revised those statements. In a September Fox News interview, he said he had “missed the mark on some of my past statements,” said there are two sexes and supported a federal ban on sex-alteration surgeries for minors.
Those revisions have not simply drawn attacks from the right. LGBTQ activists have also questioned whether Talarico has shifted positions as the general election tightened. The Washington Post reported that Texas Stonewall Democrats leader Robert Vargas III called Talarico’s recent remarks “a significant shift,” while Equality Texas CEO Brad Pritchett said, “We expect better,” reported The Washington Post.
Talarico faces pressure from another part of the left as well. Socialist streamer Hasan Piker told supporters at a September 30 University of Texas at Austin event that activists who helped Talarico win should remind him who put him in power and that “if he wants to maintain it he’s got to play ball,” as The Dallas Express previously covered.
Black Democratic Support Holds Friction
The Congressional Black Caucus PAC endorsed Talarico in September, and U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-Texas) issued a post-primary statement supporting the Democratic nominee after she lost the primary. In late September, Crockett’s Fueling Individual Rights Everywhere (FIRE) PAC released an endorsement list that did not include Talarico.
Sheena Flanary, a former Collin County Democratic Party chair who now serves as Texas Democratic Party vice chair for voter engagement, said in an undercover recording that the campaign rebuffed her offers of help, as The Dallas Express reported.
As The Dallas Express previously reported, Talarico also faced pointed questions from black voters at a July 19 town hall in Houston.
Why The Race Matters
The Texas contest could help determine control of the U.S. Senate. Republicans currently hold 53 seats, while Democrats hold 45 and two independents caucus with Democrats, the Senate shows. A Democratic pickup in Texas would erase one Republican seat in a cycle where Democrats need a net gain of four seats to reach 51.
Texas has not elected a Democrat to the U.S. Senate since Lloyd Bentsen won reelection in 1988, per The Texas Tribune.
That makes Talarico’s absence more than campaign-trail gossip. The stakes extend well beyond either candidate. Texans will help determine not only who represents the state in the U.S. Senate, but also which party holds greater influence over the nation’s laws, judicial confirmations and federal agenda.
Voters should examine the candidates’ records, statements and positions carefully and make their voices heard at the ballot box.
Texas early voting begins October 19 and runs through October 30. Election Day falls on November 3.
Provided by Dallas Express
