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Early voting is open through Oct. 30. Election Day is Nov. 3, 12 days away. Elections

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Paxton and Talarico trade campaign attacks in tight Texas Senate race

Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton and Democrat state Rep. James Talarico have released campaign ads and made statements attacking each other as the midterm election approaches. Paxton has criticized Talarico's record on taxes and energy policy; Talarico has attacked Paxton's legal history.

Where
Statewide
When
Oct. 22, 2026 and days leading up to it
Sources
Reported by 2 outlets

Taxes and money

The sources don't state an effect on taxes. They do state these figures.

  • Campaign spending$500 million1 Who pays or receives it: combined spending in the race

Does this affect you?

Who's involved

  • Ken PaxtonRepublican Texas Attorney General running for U.S. Senate
  • James TalaricoDemocrat state Rep. running for U.S. Senate
  • Ben Fergusonmentioned in Paxton campaign post

The facts

  • Spending in the Texas Senate race has topped $500 million.1
  • Paxton released two ads on Saturday attacking Talarico's economic record.1
  • Paxton said Talarico 'voted to force a state income tax' on Texans.1
  • Talarico's campaign released an Oct. 20 ad featuring Talarico discussing his record against Paxton's.1
  • Talarico held a campaign stop in Beaumont on Oct. 22.2

Who said what

These are statements and claims made by the people involved. They are reported, not verified.

  • Ken Paxton James Talarico has never met a tax increase he did not love.1
  • Ken Paxton Talarico has declared war on Texas oil and Texas beef.1
  • Ken Paxton Talarico is obsessed with transitions and wants to transition Texas off oil and gas.1
  • Ken Paxton James Talarico belongs in California, not Texas.1
  • James Talarico I have a legislative record. Ken Paxton has a criminal record.1
  • James Talarico Paxton is trying to take power back from billionaire mega-donors and corrupt politicians.2

How they headlined it

The same event, as each outlet put it. Marked words appear in only one outlet's headline.

  • Texas Senate Campaign Gets Even More Heated As Paxton and Talarico Trade Attacks Before Midterms

    Townhall

  • James Talarico brings his Senate campaign to Beaumont in heated battle against Ken Paxton

    KFDM, fox4beaumont.com

Sources

Outlets: 2 not rated Who's covering Texas →

These outlets were found through Google News headlines. Google decides which outlets appear there, and they lean mostly one way, so this sheet can only be as balanced as the reporting it was built from. Leanings are AllSides Media Bias Ratings.

  1. Texas Senate Campaign Gets Even More Heated As Paxton and Talarico Trade Attacks Before Midterms Townhall Not rated, October 22, 2026
  2. James Talarico brings his Senate campaign to Beaumont in heated battle against Ken Paxton fox4beaumont.com Not rated, October 22, 2026

Also reported by KFDM.

This sheet was written by AI from the sources above and adds nothing they don't state. Read the originals for full context.

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All corrections and updates

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Four candidates run in Texas 34th Congressional District race

Voting has begun in Texas's 34th Congressional District with four candidates on the ballot. Early voting ends October 30, and Election Day is November 3.

Eddie Espinoza, Green Party candidate; Eric Flores, Republican candidate; Vicente Gonzalez, Democratic candidate, serving fifth term in Congress and 1 more

Reported by 2 outletsFound via Google News

Tech industry becomes central campaign issue in 2026 midterm elections

Tech companies and AI have emerged as a major focus of 2026 midterm election campaigns. Both Republican and Democratic candidates are running ads and making speeches attacking or defending datacenters, AI, and tech billionaires. Ken Paxton, the Republican U.S. Senate candidate in Texas, has called for a slowdown on AI despite the industry's pro-Trump alignment.

more than $75 million for PAC fundraising for tech-friendly candidates

Ken Paxton, Republican U.S. Senate candidate in Texas; James Talarico, Democratic U.S. Senate candidate in Texas; Three Star Pac, Democrat-aligned PAC running anti-datacenter campaign ads and 4 more

Reported by 2 outletsOnly left-leaning outlets reported thisFound via Google News

Texas parties shift campaign ad messaging in 2026 midterm election

An analysis of campaign advertising data shows Republicans and Democrats have evolved their top issues since June. Republicans spent $359 million emphasizing crime, taxation, and transgender issues; Democrats spent $156.1 million focusing on taxation, healthcare, and corruption.

$359 million for republican campaign advertising spending

Republicans, political party with candidates in Texas statewide races; Democrats, political party with candidates in Texas statewide races; Ken Paxton, Republican Senate candidate and 3 more

One outletOnly left-leaning outlets reported thisFound via Google News

Unknown sender distributed transgender pamphlets to Texas households during election

Pamphlets marketed to transgender youth were mailed to Texas households this week, offering advice on legal emancipation, hormone therapy, and out-of-state care resources. The Transgender Education Network of Texas denied sending them or printing them, though the mailers listed the organization's name. The sender's identity is unknown.

Transgender Education Network of Texas (TENT), advocacy organization named on mailers; denied sending or printing them; Texas Transgender Student Union, return address listed on mailers; Wyoming Secretary of State, registered the sending organization last month

Reported by 2 outletsFound via Google News

Fox News poll shows Paxton and Talarico tied at 49% in Texas Senate race

A new Fox News poll released Wednesday shows Republican Ken Paxton and Democrat James Talarico each at 49% support among likely Texas voters in the U.S. Senate race, with less than two weeks until Election Day. The candidates have not agreed to debate.

Ken Paxton, Republican U.S. Senate candidate; James Talarico, Democrat U.S. Senate candidate; Fox News, polling organization and 1 more

Reported by 2 outletsOnly right-leaning outlets reported thisFound via Google News

Social media videos accuse Texas Senate candidate Talarico; researchers say Russian disinformation

A social media post containing AI-generated videos accused Democrat James Talarico of sexual abuse. Disinformation researchers attributed the post to Storm-1516, a Kremlin-backed propaganda network, saying the allegation is not real.

James Talarico, Democrat candidate for Texas Senate; Ken Paxton, Republican candidate for Texas Senate, Texas Attorney General; Storm-1516, Kremlin-backed propaganda network attributed to the disinformation campaign and 2 more

Reported by 2 outletsFound via Google News

Ken Paxton holds campaign event in Fort Worth during Senate race

Ken Paxton, the Republican state Attorney General running for U.S. Senate against Democrat James Talarico, held a campaign event called the Come and Take It Tour at T&P Station in downtown Fort Worth. Attendees included conservative voters who criticized Talarico's positions.

Ken Paxton, Republican state Attorney General, U.S. Senate candidate; James Talarico, Democrat U.S. Senate candidate; Leonard Lang, Voter at Paxton campaign event and 2 more

Reported by 2 outletsOnly right-leaning outlets reported thisFound via Google News

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