How Texas' Talarico is leveraging social media in his bid for the Senate
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James Talarico at a campaign rally in September. Photo: Brandon Bell/Getty Images
Texas state Rep. James Talarico (D-Austin) is hoping the national profile he has earned through social media can vault him to victory in the state's U.S. Senate race.
Why it matters: Democrats think that if the strategy can work in Texas next year it can help lead them out of the political wilderness nationally.
Catch up quick: Talarico, a 36-year-old part-time seminary student and former public school teacher, has won social media fame for his criticism of Republican legislation as un-Christian.
- Over the summer, he appeared on Joe Rogan's podcast and won gushing enthusiasm from the libertarian host. ("You need to run for president.")
- Talarico has 1.4 million followers on TikTok, with many posts featuring clips of his political oratory, some getting as many 15 million views.
The big picture: In the wake of the unlikely victory of Zohran Mamdani in the Democratic primary for New York City mayor — a win widely credited to the progressive's social media savvy — politicians across the country are trying to capture some internet magic.
- The media landscape is now famously fragmented, with most Americans getting their news from social media, raising the stakes for candidates to be able to message online.
Yes, but: Posting to TikTok doesn't necessarily mean picking up persuadable voters, according to political consultants.
What they're saying: "Authenticity really matters," John Campbell, a Republican digital strategist with the D.C.-based firm Red Edge, tells Axios. "If they can't authentically meet the audience that matters to them, they're going to create wooden moments."
- Sivan Jacobovitz, co-founder of Brooklyn-based Van Ness Creative Strategies, says his firm advises their Democratic clients to focus on three things — substance, story and trust.
- "It's your opportunity to stand out in a crowded field, nationalize your race — which helps with fundraising — and to dive deeper into specific policy points that may appeal in certain districts to more highly engaged electorates," Jacobovitz tells Axios.
- Neither Campbell nor Jacobovitz is working on the Texas U.S. Senate race.
Zoom in: Talarico says it will take something unconventional for a Democrat to win statewide.
- He points to his Texas House campaign in 2018, when he flipped a district that voted for Trump after walking his entire district — 25 miles — in a single day, holding town halls and putting it on Facebook Live.
- "The appearance on Joe Rogan is an indication of how I will be campaigning — going places you might not expect to go," Talarico told Axios in September. "It'll take an unconventional campaign to flip Texas. Cookie-cutter campaigns are not going to cut it."
Between the lines: "This is the new model to connect with voters who are increasingly moving away from the Democratic Party," Talarico press secretary JT Ennis tells Axios.
Reality check: A University of Houston-Texas Southern University poll conducted in late September has Talarico trailing former U.S. Rep. Colin Allred in a head-to-head primary matchup.
- In a four-way hypothetical matchup, U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett of Dallas, who has not said she's running, leads the pack.
The bottom line: Beto O'Rourke's unconventional barnstorming campaign in 2018 got him close to unseating U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, while U.S. Rep. Colin Allred's approach of concentrating on big cities in 2024 ended with an 8.5-point defeat. Talarico is betting the TikTok candidacy puts Democrats over the top.
Editor's note: This story has been corrected to show JT Ennis is Talarico's press secretary (not campaign manager).