Six large screens emblazoned with the Texas flag illuminated the crowded, two-story bar and nightclub in Houston as Democratic U.S. Senate candidate James Talarico took the stage.
When the doors to Rich's Houston opened at 6 p.m. Wednesday — an hour before Talarico was set to speak — a line of Houstonians had already begun to snake its way around the Midtown neighborhood block. According to Talarico's campaign, more than 1,000 people had RSVP’d for the event.
The state representative from Austin opened his remarks by discussing service and the people in his life who represented that during his childhood — his grandfather "Poppy," a World War II veteran, his mother, and his adopted father who gave him the name Talarico.
"Poppy's favorite Bible story was in the Gospel of Matthew, when Jesus' disciples are all jockeying for position and he tells them, ‘The rulers of this world lord their power over the people, but among you it will be different. The greatest among you will be a servant,'" Talarico said. "That is a counter-cultural idea. In a world that's obsessed with power and wealth and status, Jesus is saying that real greatness is serving other people."
After espousing the virtues of service, Talarico wasted little time before going on the offensive and said his Republican opponent in November’s election, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, is the antithesis of a servant.
"I ran for office not to be served, but to serve," he said. "And then there's Ken Paxton. I have a legislative record. Ken Paxton has a criminal record. Ken Paxton is the most corrupt politician in America, and he belongs nowhere close to the United States Senate."
Paxton for years faced felony securities fraud charges, but they were dropped in 2024 as part of a deal in which he agreed to pay about $270,000 in restitution, complete 100 hours of community service and take 15 hours of legal ethics courses. He previously was impeached on corruption charges in 2023 but subsequently acquitted by the Texas Senate. Paxton also was the subject of a federal corruption investigation until the Department of Justice, during the tail end of President Joe Biden’s term, decided not to bring charges, according to the Associated Press.
During Tuesday's primary runoff election, Paxton soundly defeated incumbent Sen. John Cornyn. During his victory speech, Paxton attacked Talarico, calling him "a puppet" for the national Democratic Party.
"My opponent is the most extreme radical the Democrats have ever nominated," Paxton said Tuesday. "He's a threat to our security and our safety. ... He's a vegan who thinks God is non-binary and that there's actually six biological sexes."
Talarico has repeatedly said he is not a vegan. During a debate in 2021, Talarico said there are six genders. He has since walked back the comment, and said he "missed the mark" with some of his past statements, according to NBC.
Following Talarico's roughly 20-minute remarks in Houston, attendees slowly began trickling out of the venue after waiting in line to get a photo with the candidate.
Lauren Knight, a law student at the University of Houston, was among those who attended the rally. She said that while she liked Talarico's proposed anti-corruption policies, she also thinks his religious messaging has broad appeal to moderate Texas voters.
"I was raised religiously. I don't actively practice anymore. So, I think his policies are more so what speaks to me than religion," Knight said. "I've seen a lot of my Republican friends even switching sides, with the Republicans going more extreme. And he kind of has an appeal to both sides, especially with his Christian background."
Talarico made sure to give his anti-corruption platform equal time and spoke about several of his key goals if elected to the U.S. Senate. He is seeking to become the first Democrat to win a statewide election in Texas in more than 30 years.
"This is a spiritual battle between selfishness and service, between greed and greatness," he said. "After we win this race, the first bill that I'm going to file is a comprehensive, anti-corruption package: getting big money out of our politics ... banning corporate PACs and Super PACs ... banning members of Congress from trading stocks. ... We must pass term limits. ... We must overhaul the Supreme Court ... and we must finally pass a national ban to end gerrymandering."
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Houston natives Cheryl and Steve Barrett were also among those at Talarico's rally. They said they've both become increasingly politically active over the past few years.
"I do think he has a chance to win," Steve said. "We have to do something about campaign finance reform. So, he's got a lot of ideas. I think he brings [that] to the table, and I do think the other side of the coin is devoid of ideas."
While the Barretts are optimistic about Talarico's chances this November, they both remember 2018, when then-Democratic Senate candidate Beto O'Rourke fell just shy of defeating incumbent Republican Sen. Ted Cruz.
"I didn't like Cruz, so I had a lot of hope for Beto," Cheryl said. "So, I don't want to be too negative, but I don't want to get my hopes up too high either because Texas can disappoint."
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