State Rep. James Talarico (D-Austin) is an underdog for U.S. Senate, but his name is already being whispered as a potential 2028 vice presidential candidate.

Why it matters: The mere suggestion reflects just how stratospheric Talarico's rise has been — and how desperate Democrats are to win Texas' electoral votes.

What they're saying: "If Talarico wins the seat against the Republican nominee, I think he's likely or very likely to be the vice presidential pick in 2028," NYU marketing professor Scott Galloway said on "Pivot," the podcast he co-hosts with journalist Kara Swisher, following Talarico's March primary victory.

• Last year, influential podcaster Joe Rogan suggested Talarico should aim for the White House.

Flashback: Barack Obama's Senate run in 2004 — including a galvanizing keynote address at the Democratic National Convention that summer — established his national profile ahead of a successful presidential run in 2008.

• Current Vice President Vance had not served two years in the U.S. Senate before Donald Trump named him as his running mate in the 2024 election.

Zoom in: Talarico's campaign declined an Axios request for comment.

Between the lines: Selecting Talarico as a running mate — should he win in November — would "send a message that whoever was the presidential candidate ... would be reaching out and cares about the electorate that Talarico had resonated with," Joel Goldstein, a scholar of the vice presidency, tells Axios.

• "It's about who's picking and what they see their needs are. He would certainly be in the conversation," Goldstein adds.

Context: Talarico has carved out a new lane in Texas politics: a Christian Democrat who appeals to Hispanic voters and suburbanites — both key constituencies.

Follow the money: His campaign has been hauling in record amounts of cash, building a donor base around the country that would be attractive to any White House run.

The intrigue: A Talarico Senate win would immediately raise the question of whether he could help deliver Texas' 40 electoral votes to Democrats in 2028.

• Choosing Texas running mates (U.S. Sens. Lyndon B. Johnson in 1960; Lloyd Bentsen in 1988) has been a way for northern Democrats to reach into the South as they aim for ticket balance.

If Talarico wins the 2026 Senate race and if he's named to a White House ticket and that ticket wins — a string of very big "ifs" — he would resign his Senate seat, likely in early January 2029, before being sworn in as vice president.

• The governor would then be empowered to appoint his successor, who could be of either party.

Reality check: No Democrat has won a statewide election in Texas since 1994.

• Talarico will face either U.S. Sen. John Cornyn or Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who are vying for the GOP nomination in a May 26 runoff and who are trailing Talarico in recent polling.

Between the lines: If Talarico does manage to pull off an upset in Texas, national Democrats will be reluctant to give up his seat with a (likely) Republican governor — Greg Abbott — appointing his successor.

• "When push comes to shove in those conversations, that's often a decisive factor — you don't want to mess with a 50-50 Senate or one that's 51-49. You don't want to shake that up with other viable (running mate) options available, which there will be," Adam Schiffer, a scholar of American politics at TCU, tells Axios.

The bottom line: For every James Talarico, even if he wins in 2026, there could be a Jon Ossoff, the Democratic U.S. senator running for reelection in Georgia, or a Seth Bodnar, now running in Montana as an independent for the U.S. Senate.

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⚽️ Austin FC defeated St. Louis City SC 2-0 at Q2 Stadium yesterday, as stalwarts Brandon Vazquez and Owen Wolff returned to the field from injury. (Austin American-Statesman)

🎸 Willie Nelson made the New York Times' list of the 30 greatest living songwriters. (New York Times)

🏡 Single-family housing units built to be rentals are becoming a growing share of Austin's real estate market. (Austin Business Journal 🔒)

🦴 Texas de-extinction company Colossal Biosciences says it's aiming to revive another species: the bluebuck. The bluebuck is a member of the antelope family, hunted to extinction more than two centuries ago. (Axios)

Here's what's in store this week.

Monday

🎶 Dance to Raye at Moody Amphitheater. 6pm, general lawn starts around $90.

Tuesday

🇲🇽 Join the Mexic-Arte Museum for a Cinco de Mayo luncheon, featuring Raul A. Ramos, an associate professor and director of graduate studies at the University of Houston. $175, 11am-1pm.

📖 Hear from Jess Cannon, in conversation with authors Ali Hazelwood and Johnny Compton, to celebrate Cannon's book "Zoom with a View" at Book People on North Lamar Boulevard. Free, 7pm. Reserve your spot online.

Wednesday

🎭 Catch "Bridgerdown," the story of a widow and her daughter who arrive in London just in time for the social season, at The Vortex. $30, 8-11pm.

Thursday

🤠 Listen to Austin alt-country artist Megan Lacy's album release show at Meanwhile Brewing. Free, 7:30pm.

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New polling shows an uptick in religious fervor among young men, even as overall U.S. levels remain near historic lows.

Driving the news: A recent Gallup poll found that 42% of young men between the ages of 18-29 now say religion is "very important" in their lives, up from 28% a few years ago.

Zoom in: Churches, synagogues and mosques around metro Austin are engaging Gen Z.

• "The Great Awakening is happening right here in Austin with Gen Z," Joy512, a Christian radio station posted on Instagram last week. "Hundreds show up at Barton Springs to watch many get baptized."