James Talarico and Ken Paxton ended the Texas Election with dueling rallies on the eve of Election Day, sharpening a race that now comes down to Texas voters. Talarico spoke at Stubb's BBQ in Austin, while Paxton campaigned at Matt's Rancho Martinez in Allen, 220 miles north.
Talarico used his closing pitch to cast the contest as a fight over power, money and momentum. He told supporters it was a David-versus-Goliath battle against corporate money and mega-donors, then said, “This is the last play of the last drive.” He added, “It’s time for us to start flipping over some tables.”
The final hours were not polite. Talarico aimed one of his sharpest lines at Paxton, describing him as someone who leaves people feeling uncomfortable and slips his drink onto someone else’s tab when no one is looking. “I am done picking up his tab!” he told the crowd. Paxton answered in kind, saying Texans ought to “transition him out of office” on Election Day. Bob Hall, warming up the Allen crowd, mocked Talarico with a line that drew laughter: “The first reason is James Talarico. The second reason: James Talarico. And the third reason? Freako Talarico!”
Paxton also tried to turn the race into a warning about the state’s political future, telling supporters that Texas’ 32-year Republican streak hangs by a thread. That is the friction at the center of this race: he was campaigning to preserve Republican control while arguing the hold on power was dangerously thin. The polls backed up that sense of danger, showing a razor-thin contest rather than a comfortable lead for either side.
The broader fight has made this one of Texas’ most consequential elections in years, with both candidates leaning hard on very different closing images. Paxton ran a Come and Take It tour, while Talarico took a Friday Night Lights-style road trip. Now the speeches are over, the insults are out in the open, and the next move belongs to the voters who decide whether that Republican streak survives another day.
