Talarico seeks U.S. Senate seat in Nov. 3 Texas race

State Rep. James Talarico, a Round Rock Democrat, is running for U.S. Senate in the Nov. 3 Texas general election.

Talarico faces Republican Ken Paxton and Libertarian Ted Brown, according to BallotReady election data. He is certified for the ballot.

Candidate information

Party: Democratic
Born in: Round Rock, Texas
Education: High school diploma, McNeil High School; bachelor's degree in government, University of Texas; master's degree in education policy, Harvard University
Personal: Talarico is a type 1 diabetic.

Experience and public service

Talarico has served as state representative for District 50 since 2018, according to BallotReady. He sits on the Texas House Public Education Committee, the Juvenile Justice and Family Issues Committee and the Calendars Committee, according to his Texas House biography.

Texas Monthly magazine named him one of the Top 10 Best Legislators, according to his Texas House biography.

In the Texas Legislature, Talarico said he passed laws to cap insulin copays at $25 a month, passed legislation to import low-cost prescription drugs from Canada, and passed laws to combat teen fentanyl overdoses. He also said he passed measures to ban reality TV policing, increase accountability within the Texas Juvenile Justice Department and give all incarcerated minors in Texas the opportunity to earn a high school diploma, according to his Texas House biography.

On the issues

The following positions are stated by the candidate through his campaign website and BallotReady responses.

Healthcare: Talarico said he supports allowing every American to join Medicare regardless of age. He said he would cap out-of-pocket costs for lifesaving drugs, regulate pharmacy benefit managers, increase price transparency and incentivize generic drug development. He said he wants to expand Medicaid and prioritize recruiting rural health care workers.

Taxes and cost of living: Talarico said he would lower property taxes by making the state government pay its fair share of school funding. He said he supports expanding the Child Tax Credit and the Earned Income Tax Credit. He said he would make billionaires pay higher taxes, including by ending what he called the "buy, borrow, die" loopholes. He said he would also raise corporate taxes. He said he would repeal what he called the Trump tariffs, which he said are raising prices on groceries, cars and clothing.

Education: Talarico said he would reject school voucher programs, protect federal oversight ensuring special education students receive funding and support, and establish universal pre-K for every 3- and 4-year-old. He said he supports closing tax loopholes that allow commercial property owners to reduce their taxes, shifting school funding costs to residential property owners.

Immigration: Talarico said he supports securing the border and making legal immigration easier. He said he would prioritize deporting criminals, gang members and human traffickers. He said he supports creating a path to citizenship for immigrants who have been here the longest, spouses and DREAMers, while allowing recent arrivals to apply for temporary work permits if they fill jobs that help lower costs for Americans.

Government reform: Talarico said he supports term limits of six two-year terms in the House and two six-year terms in the Senate. He said he would ban members of Congress from trading individual stocks and establish independent redistricting commissions.