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Former President Barack Obama appeared in Texas to help shore up support among Black voters for Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico on Tuesday.
Talarico has struggled to shore up support among the Black community after a heated primary against Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas. Crockett won Black voters by a huge majority, but nevertheless lost the primary thanks to Talarico’s support among white and Latino Democrats.
Winning in Texas remains a long shot for Democrats, but Obama appeared at a campaign event for Talarico on Tuesday, ordering tacos from the candidate’s favorite local restaurant in Austin, Taco Joint. Also present was Gina Hinojosa, a state-level politician challenging Gov. Greg Abbott.
“Do you know our outstanding next governor and senator?” Obama asked one table of patrons, according to the New York Times.
Texas gubernatorial candidate Gina Hinojosa (D-TX), Texas Senate candidate James Talarico (D-TX) and Former President Barack Obama meet patrons at the restaurant Taco Joint on the campaign trail on May 12, 2026 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Joel Angel Juarez-Pool/Getty Images)
Talarico’s struggle with Black voters came to a head in the March primary against Crockett, when he was accused of calling Rep. Collin Allred, R-Texas, “mediocre.”
“James Talarico told me that he signed up to run against a mediocre Black man, not a formidable and intelligent black woman,” Morgan Thompson, a political commentator and one-time supporter of Talarico’s said in a video at the time.
Allred then amplified the incident with a video on X, saying he had steam “coming out my ears.”
Texas Senate candidate James Talarico speaks at a campaign rally on March 2, 2026 in Houston. (Danielle Villasana/Getty Images)
“I understand that James Talarico had the temerity and the audacity to say to a Black woman that he had signed up to run against a mediocre Black man, meaning me, not a formidable, intelligent, Black woman, meaning Jasmine Crockett,” Allred said, adding that Talarico shouldn’t compliment Black women while “tearing down Black men.”
“We’ve seen that play before. We’re sick and tired of it,” he said.
Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-TX) lost a Democratic primary against Talarico in March. (Aaron Schwartz/Getty Images)
Talarico told the Times that Thompson’s recollection of his comment was a “mischaracterization.”
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“In my praise of Congresswoman Crockett, I described Congressman Allred’s method of campaigning as mediocre,” he told the outlet in a statement. “I would never attack him on the basis of race.”