Texas Senate Race: Flu Diagnosis Sidelines Democrat James Talarico as Ken Paxton Rolls Out Attack Ads

Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico announced that he had contracted the flu and withdrew from in-person campaigning after an urgent-care visit in Dallas. He explained that he was “most contagious” during a virtual appearance at a U.S. Hispanic Business Council forum in late September and chose to stay home to protect supporters, especially vulnerable family members. His last face-to-face event had been a fundraising dinner with actor Robert De Niro in late September.

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Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton, now the GOP nominee after defeating incumbent Sen. John Cornyn, launched television ads that highlighted Talarico’s absence, claiming the Democrat had been “missing for 11 days.” The ads juxtaposed the flu-related pause with a broader critique of Paxton’s campaign, suggesting he is “ignoring Texans” and answering only to wealthy donors.

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Talarico’s campaign spokesperson J.T. Ennis said the candidate had held more than 100 public events and would return to the trail soon. Ennis also accused Paxton of prioritizing “billionaire megadonors and special interests.” Paxton, speaking at a closed-door fundraiser, blamed external factors such as the war in Iran, gas prices, and diesel costs for dragging on his campaign.

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Decision Desk HQ’s recent polling averages indicate Paxton trails Talarico by roughly three percentage points heading into the November general election. Texas, traditionally a Republican stronghold, presents a competitive environment for Democrats, especially given Paxton’s past controversies, including an unsuccessful 2023 impeachment on corruption charges and recent backlash over leaked audio remarks about the war in Iran and domestic price pressures.

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• “Paxton has been ignoring Texans this entire campaign, and his priorities are clear: he doesn’t answer to the people of this state — he answers to his billionaire megadonors and special interests,” — T. Ennis

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• “It’s not tariffs. … It’s the war, it’s gas prices, it’s diesel,” — General Ken Paxton, texas attorney

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