Tight race against Republican Ken Paxton draws intense scrutiny over faith, foreign policy, and abortion
Texas Democratic Senate nominee James Talarico faced a rigorous questioning session from undecided voters during a televised CNN town hall on Wednesday evening. As the November midterms approach, the closely watched contest has seen ad spending surpass $500 million, positioning it to potentially become the most expensive non-presidential race in US history.
During the event, voters pressed Talarico on a series of contentious subjects, including abortion access, foreign aid, and Israel’s military campaign in Gaza. One small business owner directly questioned the authenticity of Talarico's faith, bringing up a previous remark in which the candidate described God as nonbinary.
Talarico has sought to position himself as a moderate committed to prioritizing Texans over strict party allegiances. Recent polling from Marist University released Wednesday indicates a tightening contest, showing Talarico leading Republican state Attorney General Ken Paxton within the margin of error as Republicans fight to defend a historically conservative seat that Democrats have not won since 1988.