How fired-up Texas Dems gave Talarico a jolt toward November
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Texas state Rep. James Talarico thanks supporters late Tuesday in Austin. Photo: John Moore/Getty Images
"Turn Texas blue" has been more of a punchline than a battle cry in the Lone Star State lately, but Democrats' enthusiastic turnout in Tuesday's Senate primary has given them hope for November.
Why it matters: In counties across Texas, Democratic voters made up a dramatically larger percentage of the electorate than in 2024 — with big increases in hot battlegrounds such as mostly Hispanic South Texas and the well-off suburbs of North Texas.
Zoom in: Democrats and what appeared to be a significant number of crossover voters were drawn to the polls by the combination of two popular Democratic contenders for the U.S. Senate, a particularly nasty race on the GOP side, and the usual X factor — President Trump.
James Talarico's win over U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett came with the usual caveats for Texas Democrats — namely, whether a party that hasn't won a statewide election since 1994 can really win in November.
- But there were sparks of encouragement for Democrats nearly everywhere they looked:
In South Texas' mostly Hispanic Cameron County — which Trump won by nearly 6 points in 2024 as Republicans posted unprecedented gains among Latinos — 71% of the primary voters cast ballots for Democrats.
- Talarico won the county with nearly twice the votes Crockett received and more than three times what Sen. John Cornyn got in topping Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in the county's GOP primary.
- That scenario was repeated throughout South Texas, where Talarico dominated in majority-Hispanic counties.
In red-leaning, fast-growing Collin County just north of Dallas — where no Democrat has won the presidential race since Lyndon Johnson in 1964 — 57% of the votes cast Tuesday were in the Democratic primary.
- Talarico won that suburb, which has been trending toward Democrats in recent years but which Trump won by more than 11 points in 2024.
In Tarrant County, home to Fort Worth and one of the largest urban jurisdictions Trump won in the last election, 57% of the votes cast Tuesday went to Democrats.
- Crockett topped Talarico there, as she did in Dallas and Houston amid high turnout in areas with large Black populations.
Other Republican-led counties also reported significantly more action in the Democratic primary than on the GOP side, including Williamson County, which is just north of solidly blue Austin and includes Round Rock, where Talarico lives.
- About 56% of the votes cast in Williamson County were in the Democratic primary, with Talarico winning easily.
What they're saying: "This is proof that there's something happening in Texas," Talarico — a seminarian who's made "progressive Christianity" his calling card — told supporters in his victory speech.
- He thanked young voters, independents, Republicans, fellow Democrats and others he counted as supporters.
Reality check: A midterm primary isn't a general election, when far more voters cast ballots and more people are paying attention. Republicans have the advantage in Texas, even without Trump on the ballot.
- "Texas is to Democrats what Minnesota is to Republicans," GOP strategist Hogan Gidley told CBS News. "In large part it's Fool's gold."
- "We always talk about winning Minnesota ... and we always lose it by a few points. This could happen here in Texas as well" to Democrats.
