Democrat James Talarico is running for the Senate in Texas, and the 36-year-old is not playing around.
Talarico caught my attention in 2024 when he spoke out against the Christian extreme-right. In the video above he said:
"Christian Nationalists walk around with a mouth full of scripture and a heart full of hate."
and
"They've turned [Jesus] into a gun-toting, gay-bashing, science-denying, money-loving, fear-mongering fascist."
The young Democrat served multiple terms as a Texas State Senator in the Austin area while attending seminary to become a Presbyterian pastor.
Talarico says being a Christian isn't about guns and hating immigrants. He says it's pretty simple: “to love God and love neighbor.”
Why Talarico is a Different Kind of Democrat
The young Texas middle-school teacher turned politician has been fighting the "moral madness" happening in Texas.
Talarico talks like a regular person while changing minds about what it really means to be a Christian. Spoiler alert: MAGA is doing it wrong. It turns out the actual words of Jesus urge followers to welcome the stranger and love other people.
Talarico is making waves, and people like his approach to political issues.
The Texas native got the attention of podcast titan Joe Rogan, who invited Talarico on his podcast. By the time Talarico was done with the interview, Rogan wanted him to run for something.
James Talarico Pushes Back on Media
The former middle school teacher turned Texas state politician is tired of politics as usual and doesn't suffer fools. Talarico is tired of how the media portrays Democrats.
Below is an interview after he launched his campaign for the U.S. Senate last week. He lays it on the line, saying that reporters don't ask about the issues; they only ask about transathletes.
James Talarico just flipped the script on MAGA attacks against him.
This is how you do it. pic.twitter.com/XZY0Ftc4C0— First To Hear It (@firsttohearit) September 15, 2025
Strong Message
Talarico's message is strong, and it's getting attention. He raised one million dollars in the first 24 hours of his Senate campaign.
James Talarico's message is strong. He says it's not the 1% trans population, or the 1% undocumented immigrant population, or the 1% Muslim population that are harming America...
It's the 1% billionaire class.
That's a message most Texans can get behind.
