James Talarico Named One of '25 Young(ish) New Democrats to Watch'

As the Texas Democratic Primary for the Senate intensifies, New York Magazine has crowned state Rep. James Talarico (D) one of the “25 Young(ish) New Democrats to Watch.”

New York Magazine highlighted 25 Democrats who have been identified as promising politicians.

The list also includes Rep. Greg Casar (D), citing his leadership as the Chairman of the Progressive Caucus and his close work with the Democratic Socialists of America.

State Rep. Talarico, who is 36 years old and a Presbyterian minister, catapulted into the public spotlight after protesting Republican efforts to redraw Texas’ congressional map. He has cited God as his determining factor for entering politics, saying, “He told us to love our neighbors, and that’s an inherently public thing.”

Despite one election analyst calling him “a Beto 2.0,” the Texas Democrat is determined to flip incumbent Senator John Cornyn’s (R) seat blue. However, the road there is difficult considering that state Rep. Talarico would have to win a contentious primary race and then a general election.

For context, Texas Democrats have not won a statewide race since the Texas Democrat was 5 years old.

He is currently facing former Rep. Colin Allred (D), who lost to Senator Ted Cruz (R) in the 2024 senatorial race. To make matters more difficult, Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D) has indicated that she is considering a senatorial bid, which would pit state Rep. Talarico against a more established Texas Democrat.

State Rep. Talarico launched his senatorial bid in early September, vowing to go after billionaires.

“The biggest divide in our country is not left versus right. It’s top versus bottom,” the senatorial hopeful said in his announcement video.

“The people at the top work so hard to keep us angry and divided because our unity is a threat to their wealth and their power, so their social media algorithms and their cable news networks tear us apart,” he warned.