weekend in Houston on Sunday with a rally at one of the city's largest Black churches as he attempts to mobilize voters who could push him over the edge in his U.S.
Senate race against Republican Ken Paxton.
A diverse crowd of several hundred people came out for Talarico's rally at the Wheeler Avenue Baptist Church in Third Ward to hear the Democratic Senate nominee's pitch, which centered around affordability and unity.
Talarico enters the home stretch of the Senate race polling neck-and-neck with Paxton, the Texas attorney general, and Black voters are crucial to his hopes for a victory in November. A bitter primary against U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett, who had the backing of many Black leaders and voters, has left the Austin Democrat with ground to make up.
In his address on Sunday, Talarico said he would not take Black Texans, historically one of the state's most reliable Democratic voting blocs, for granted, noting that Texas is home to more Black people than any state in the country.
"That work of representing Black Texans doesn't start the day after Election Day, it starts now," Talarico said. "That is why we are listening to, investing in and showing up for Black communities all over this state."
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Talarico's last on-the-ground outreach to Black Houstonians,
in July, ended with a confrontation by an activist who accused him of dismissing Black Texans, though the tone of that event was otherwise far more amicable. Polls conducted just before the primary showed roughly 80% of Black voters supporting Crockett, and the Dallas congresswoman has so far declined to campaign for Talarico in the general election.
But if there were any hard feelings at the Third Ward megachurch on Sunday, they weren't readily apparent. Multiple attendees who voted for Crockett in the primary said Talarico had their full backing against Paxton.
Bresean Cockrell, 44, said he was impressed with the way Talarico listened during difficult conversations with his Sunnyside neighbors at a campaign stop earlier this summer.
"It was uncomfortable at some points, but there were critical conversations that needed to take place," Cockrell said. "I think he took it very well, and I genuinely think he wants to work to make things better."
Talarico has committed to spending more than $25 million of his $70 million war chest to reach Black voters, and he
He hosted a back-to-school giveaway Saturday at Emancipation Park with legendary Houston DJ OG Ron C. On Sunday morning, he joined the Church Without Walls, another predominantly Black megachurch in the Cypress area, for their service.
Earlier this month, Talarico announced that he was building out his Black engagement team with three veteran political operatives and contracting with three Black-owned consulting firms, two of which are based in the Houston area.
"We want our communities invested in, and we want our voices heard before the decisions are made, and I'm here to honestly tell you that James is listening to us," said Staci Childs, the Democrat running to replace state
Rep. Alma Allen, D-Houston, in House District 131.
Childs was one of several Black candidates who introduced Talarico, along with Harris County judge candidate Letitia Plummer and Tyler Smith, the Democratic nominee challenging state
Rep. Lacey Hull, R-Houston, in House District 138.
Talarico centered his 15-minute speech on affordability, as volunteers handed out signs reading "Make Life Affordable Again." Without getting into his
specific policy proposals, Talarico denounced the rising costs of gas and groceries and framed his campaign as a battle between billionaires and the broader middle class.
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But he got his biggest cheers when he attempted to draw a contrast between himself and Paxton.
"They don't have any real attacks, so they are firing up their data centers and making up fake ones," Talarico said, referring to AI-generated attack ads that have depicted him as a surgeon conducting gender transitions on children or rewriting the bible in crayon.
"But even the most advanced AI couldn't come up with Ken Paxton's actual scandals," Talarico said.
with Paxton, Talarico cannot afford to have Black voters sit out if he hopes to win. Exit polls in recent elections show that Black residents constitute up to 25% of the Democratic vote in Texas, despite making up just about 13% of the state's electorate.
Ruby Toliver Porter, an 81-year-old congregant at Wheeler Avenue Baptist Church, said she'd be voting for Talarico in November despite supporting Crockett in the primary, saying she believes in Talarico's basic decency.
Whether his message is strong enough to mobilize the Black voters he'll need to pull off the upset remains to be seen.
"If he hasn't already, he will learn to respect the Black vote," Porter said. "We're going to wait and see, the election will tell us."
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This article originally published at James Talarico renews push for Black voters at Houston rally.