But even if these primary results don’t portend Texas going blue in November, they provide important insights about each party. On the Democratic side, it’s striking that Talarico did not run in the mold of past Southern Democrats such as Bill Clinton and Joe Manchin, who touted their pro-business bona fides and more conservative stands compared to other Democrats on issues like abortion. Instead, Talarico emphasized populist and pro-democracy ideas, such as banning super PACs and members of Congress trading individual stocks. He has strongly defended abortion rights and was a leading figure in the state legislature opposing a provision mandating that the Ten Commandments be posted in every public school classroom in the state. During the primary, he didn’t distance himself from Black voters to signal moderation to whites, but instead worked hard to win over African Americans while conceding most of them would back Crockett.
Crockett and Talarico differ in persona, but they are both liberal Democrats who speak frankly about the radicalism of today’s Republicans. That’s what the Democratic base is demanding, both in Texas and around the country. Talarico won this primary in part because of his similarities to Crockett, positioning himself as a Democrat who will fight hard against the GOP, as the congresswoman does.
On the GOP side, that Cornyn could lose demonstrates how dramatically the Republican Party has shifted in Trump’s direction over the last decade. Cornyn is very conservative on policy, strongly favoring tax cuts for the rich and corporations. There is no real reason he should have a primary challenger. But he does not revel in mistreating people who live in cities, LGBTQ Americans, and other groups associated with the Democratic Party. Paxton does. He’s used the attorney general’s perch to sue out-of-state doctors for providing abortion bills to women and try to restrict transgender minors from getting health care that they want.
