James Talarico appears to have defeated Rep. Jasmine Crockett in the Texas Senate Democratic primary, after an Election Day marked by voter confusion and accusations of Republican voter suppression. Talarico’s upset victory sets up a contest with the Republican Senate nominee, which will be determined by a runoff after none of the GOP candidates gained a majority in the first round of voting.
Talarico wins election marred by GOP-induced voting confusion
News outlets, including CNN, have projected that James Talarico has won the Texas Democratic primary for the state’s 2026 U.S. Senate election, defeating Rep. Jasmine Crockett. Talarico had presented himself as someone who could appeal across party lines, emphasizing his Presbyterian faith. The 36-year-old’s approach contrasted with that of Crockett, who has been one of the Democratic Party’s most outspoken critics of President Donald Trump and his MAGA movement. Crockett entered the race with greater name recognition and a national profile, and Talarico had missteps, including a controversy over potentially racially tinged remarks that Talarico disputed. However, Talarico gained ground, helped in the final weeks by a controversy in which his interview with Stephen Colbert was pulled from the air. In his victory speech, Talarico noted the number of independents and first-time voters who came out for the primary. “This is proof that there is something happening in Texas,” Talarico said. “Tonight, the people of our state gave this country a little bit of hope, and a little bit of hope is a dangerous thing.”
While Talarico touted voter turnout, both he and Crockett also cried foul at voting day changes that they equated to Republican-led voter suppression. As the BMB Empower Network account explained in a long social media post, many voters in the state, most notably in Dallas County, Crockett’s home county, were turned away from the polling stations where they usually vote and told they’d have to vote elsewhere. The change came because the state’s Republican Party requested a “split primary,” with each party running their vote separately, instead of the usual “joint primary.” As a result, voters could not use the countywide polling places but could only vote in neighborhood precinct voting sites, an unexpected change for many that caused mass confusion.
Concerns of voter suppression in run-up to general election
Both Democrats condemned the voting chaos. “Every vote must be counted. Every voice must be heard,” Talarico said earlier on Tuesday, according to NBC News. “The voter suppression in my home county and Congresswoman Crockett’s home county underscores the gravity of this moment.” Crockett also objected to the polling chaos, which led to a court ordering polls in Dallas County to stay open late, an order that was later rescinded based on an appeal to the Texas Supreme Court by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who himself is a candidate in the Senate race on the Republican side. “We, in my opinion, will not know the election results overall tonight,” Crockett said in a speech.
Crockett conceded the primary race Wednesday morning, and former Vice President Kamala Harris, who had backed Crockett, endorsed Talarico for the general election. He will face either incumbent Republican Sen. John Cornyn or Paxton, as the two men will participate in a runoff election later this month after neither reached a majority of votes in Tuesday’s Republican primary. The specific primary polling rules that caused confusion during Tuesday’s vote will not apply to November’s general election. Nonetheless, Democrats and voter advocates fear that Tuesday’s polling chaos, which disproportionately affected Democratic areas like Dallas, could be a preview for other voter disruptions in the state, which has already been gerrymandered to give Republicans an advantage in the House races to be decided alongside the statewide Senate race.
Tuesday’s results set up a challenge for Democrats, who have hoped to flip the Texas Senate seat and overcome Republican gerrymandering in key House races. To do so, the Texas Democratic Party will have to heal divisions from a tough and sometimes racially tinged Senate race and overcome efforts by the GOP that have disproportionately impacted Democratic voters, including those in heavily Black areas like Dallas that are crucial for Texas Democrats.