The Texas Senate race has a new storyline: the Talarico absence from the trail. Democratic nominee James Talarico has not appeared at an in-person event in Texas since Sept. 26. With 26 days until Election Day, Republicans are making sure everyone notices.
His campaign says the explanation is simple: he has the flu. His opponents, however, say the explanation is anything but.
What We Know About the Talarico Absence
Talarico’s last in-person Texas event was a Sept. 26 press conference at a Carrollton gas station, according to CNN’s reporting. There, he pushed for suspending the federal gas and diesel tax and for ending the war with Iran.
He then reportedly attended a private fundraiser in New York on Sept. 29. By his own timeline, he returned to Dallas and went to urgent care. He then disclosed the illness the next day by joining a U.S. Hispanic Business Council event virtually, as NBC News reported.
“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,” Talarico told a crowd in Edinburg, Texas, by video.
His campaign spokesperson, JT Ennis, said Thursday that “James looks forward to being back out this weekend after recovering from the flu.” That is the whole Talarico flu explanation, and the campaign has not wavered from it.
Paxton and Trump Pounce on Talarico Off the Trail
Republicans did not wait. Ken Paxton, the Texas attorney general and GOP Senate nominee, led a “Where is James Talarico?” chant at the Trump rally in San Antonio on Oct. 7. Because his win over Cornyn, covered in our report on how Paxton took the Republican primary, has made him a confident attacker, he is pressing hard.
President Trump then took to Truth Social, calling Talarico “MISSING IN ACTION,” according to the Washington Post. He then followed up with a pointed question: “12 days is a long time to rid yourself of the so-called flu bug. What’s going on?”
Paxton’s campaign has also paid for mock missing-person posters around the state. Spokeswoman Madison Cercy says the campaign has “a simple request: proof of life.”
Here’s the thing about that line. It is great political theater. It is also a flu. Still, nobody has produced evidence of anything beyond the campaign’s explanation, and nobody has produced evidence against it either.
Talarico Campaign Break Fuels the Debate Fight
Trump’s Wednesday post did more than needle. He said Talarico should “immediately report to a Debate Stage” against Paxton, per the Texas Tribune. We covered that demand in more detail in our piece on Trump’s call for a Paxton-Talarico debate.
Talarico fired back on X. He has agreed to four debates, and he says Paxton should join him. “Ball’s in your court,” he wrote. So far, Paxton has not publicly accepted any invitation.
That makes for an awkward spot. The candidate accused of hiding is the one saying yes to debates. Meanwhile, the one demanding a debate has not committed to one, and the Talarico absence only sharpens the contrast.
The Meat Jokes and the Missing-Candidate Attack
The illness has also been folded into an older attack. As ABC News noted, Trump has repeatedly claimed Talarico is a vegan who gets sick from eating meat. Talarico is not a vegan and eats meat. The claim traces back to comments he made in 2022 about reducing meat consumption.
Also worth noting: the day count depends on who is counting. Paxton’s side says 11 days, while CNN and NBC say 12. All of them start from Sept. 26. NBC specifies in-person events in Texas only, and the Paxton campaign now uses the New York trip as part of its line of attack on Talarico missing from campaign events.
Why the Talarico Absence Matters on Nov. 3
The timing is the real story. This is a tight race in a state Trump won by double digits in 2024. Polls show a dead heat, as our look at the Texas Senate race poll also found:
- NYT/Siena: Talarico 51%, Paxton 45%
- Fox News poll: Talarico 51%, Paxton 49%, with a 3-point margin of error
- UMass Lowell/YouGov: tied at 45% each, among 850 likely voters
Meanwhile, the money is pouring in. A new group, Texas PAC, spent $131 million in 17 days to boost Paxton, according to FEC reports cited by Axios. Democrats have not won a Texas Senate race since 1988.
In that environment, 12 days off the trail is a long stretch. Cost of living is the top issue for voters in the Fox poll, and every day Talarico isn’t shaking hands is a day Paxton gets to define the story. Voters hungry for specifics can compare the candidates’ affordability plans in the meantime.
What Comes Next After the Flu
The campaign says Talarico returns this weekend. He is also scheduled for a CNN/Jubilee Media town hall in Fort Worth on Wednesday, Oct. 14, and Paxton has been invited. Early voting starts Oct. 19.
If Talarico shows up healthy and loud, the “missing” jokes expire fast. If he doesn’t, they’re just getting started. And if Paxton keeps dodging the debate stage, the question everyone asks may flip: who exactly is hiding?
