Talarico and Hinojosa Make Their Final Push in Dallas as Both Texas Races Stay Tight
James Talarico and Gina Hinojosa rallied together in Dallas on Thursday night, closing a year on the trail with an affordability-and-corruption message as polling keeps both statewide races competitive into Election Day.
Democrats Gina Hinojosa and James Talarico rallied supporters together in Dallas on Thursday as both face tight races with the midterm election just days away, according to FOX 4's report, read in full this cycle. Recent polling shows Talarico holding a narrow lead over his Republican opponent, Ken Paxton, in the U.S. Senate race, while Hinojosa is polling slightly behind Republican incumbent Greg Abbott in the governor's race. A win for either would be significant: Democrats have not won a statewide election in Texas in over three decades.
The Dallas stop was one of the candidates' final pushes to get people to the polls. Hinojosa called the moment 'bittersweet' after a year on the campaign trail, and both candidates emphasized the political impact the election could have for their party, focusing on public education, families hurting financially, and corruption. 'The stakes could not be higher in this fight,' Hinojosa said. Talarico told the crowd he had traveled 'to every corner of the state, from Beaumont to El Paso, from Amarillo to Brownsville,' and argued, in his words, 'We have an affordability crisis because we have a corruption crisis.'
Both candidates took aim at their opponents over connections with billionaires, claiming Elon Musk has tried to influence the Texas election by pouring money into Republican campaigns; a Texas Tribune report cited by FOX 4 said campaign finance filings showed Musk poured nearly $190 million into the U.S. Senate race. Hinojosa has also sued seeking communications between Abbott's office and Musk; a lower court briefly granted access before the Fifteenth Court of Appeals ruled the governor does not have to comply, and the governor's office has previously called the litigation 'a sham lawsuit in a rigged district court' — a characterization carried here as the office's stated position. Paxton, for his part, was in Beaumont on Thursday night on his 'Come and Take It' tour and held two rallies alongside President Donald Trump earlier in the week. As the last person to take the Dallas stage, Talarico closed with a football metaphor: 'This is the last play of the last drive, Dallas.' Early voting ended Friday, October 30; Election Day is Tuesday, November 3, with polls closing at 7 p.m.
