Texas state Rep. James Talarico, the Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate, has gone roughly two weeks without an in-person campaign event in Texas, less than a month before the general election. His campaign says he has the flu. Republican rival Ken Paxton's campaign and several conservative commentators say the explanation doesn't account for the length of the absence or the timeline the candidate himself has given.
Senate candidate James Talarico campaigns during a Town Hall at Disciple Central Community Church in DeSoto, Texas, Monday, July 20, 2026.Anja Schlein/The Dallas Morning News
Talarico's last in-person event in the state took place Sept. 26. His campaign has attributed the gap to illness and said it expects him back on the trail this weekend. His only appearance since then came Sept. 30, when he delivered virtual remarks to the Hispanic Business Council.
That appearance is the source of the timeline dispute. Talarico reportedly traveled to New York on Sept. 29 for a private fundraiser featuring Robert De Niro. In his remarks to the Hispanic Business Council the next day via Zoom, he said he had checked himself into an urgent care facility in Dallas.
Republican strategist Caroline Wren laid out the sequence on Real America's Voice. She said Talarico last appeared at a Texas campaign event at a football game on Sept. 26, and that fundraising invitations listed events for him in New York City on Sept. 28 and 29, including one at 5:30 p.m. on Sept. 29. She said the business council forum had been planned as an in-person event, and that Talarico apologized on the call for his absence and said he had been sick enough the day before to go to urgent care.
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