Texas Senate hopeful James Talarico faces residency filing question as poll shows him ahead of Ken Paxton

James Talarico, a Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate, is alleged to have used his mother’s Austin address to register to vote for his 2021 House campaign, a filing that may not meet Texas residency requirements. State law requires candidates to have lived in the district for at least one year and in Texas for two years before an election, and there is no record that Talarico satisfied those criteria at the time of the filing.

He purchased a home within the Senate district in 2022, but the earlier registration remains contested. A poll of likely voters taken July 15‑17 shows Talarico at 45% and Republican Ken Paxton at 40% in the race.