James Talarico, the Democratic Senate candidate has been absent for 10 days, allegedly due to the flu.
By Catholics for Catholics
The question in Texas is this: where in the world is James Talarico?
Now on its 10th day, Talarico’s absence from the campaign trail in the Lone Star state has disconcerted the Texas Senate race. His vanishing has energized Republicans, who are pointedly questioning his absence, according to a story by the Daily Wire.
Talarico’s whereabouts has Democrats anxious at a time when polls show he is in a position to be the first Democrat in a generation to win a statewide election in Texas.
This week, at an event with President Trump, Ken Paxton, the Republican nominee, steered a crowd of thousands in a chant: “Where is James Talarico?”
Talarico’s campaign said that he had been in Austin recovering. His ground campaign has gone dark for 13 consecutive days, but his team insists that he is down with the flu, but his absence has fuelled intense speculation.
According to the Wire, Sara Gonzales, who hosts a show on BlazeTV, said she “received unverified information on James Talarico’s whereabouts.”
“If true, it will END his campaign,” she claimed on X. The post racked up millions of views and, with President Donald Trump pushing the issue, forced mainstream media outlets to start asking questions.
🚨 HOLY CRAP DEMS ARE PANICKING! James Talarico (D) has been off the Texas U.S. Senate campaign trail for nearly 2 WEEKS and his OWN VOLUNTEERS worry he’s "losing momentum" Ken Paxton (R) is on the rise 🔥 Candidates do NOT just go MIA because of the "flu" mere weeks before a major federal election… And if that were the case, they don’t go so RADIO SILENT like he is. Something happened. Tell the people, or DROP OUT OF THE RACE! He’s not fit for senator! @KenPaxtonTX
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) October 9, 2026
Talarico’s unknown whereabouts are fueling all sorts of questions and some conspiracy theories. Still, Spencer Pratt, the reality TV star and LA mayoral candidate, has a different theory.
“My sources are telling me Talarico is in a mental health facility. His campaign has stopped actively planning events in the vital homestretch of the campaign,” Pratt said on X.
“If this is true, this is actually a time to pray for Talarico. We should, of course, savagely mock his smug, awful campaign advisors, by all means … and while yes, of course, this would be disqualifying for Talarico’s aspirations to be a Texas Senator, we must hold empathy for anyone undergoing crisis,” he added.
Meanwhile, the Paxton campaign said Talarico has not held a rally since September 16 and hasn’t been seen in person since September 26, 13 days ago.
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