James Talarico has strong support among Black voters in his race for U.S. Senate. What he does not have is Jasmine Crockett actively campaigning to help get them to the polls.
Whether he needs her could matter in November as the Democrat tries to defeat Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton and end his party’s more than three-decade drought in Texas statewide elections.
Crockett, the Dallas congresswoman who lost to Talarico in a contentious Democratic primary, congratulated him after the election and called on Democrats to rally around the party’s nominees. But she has stopped short of campaigning alongside him.
Instead, Crockett has said she plans to focus on down-ballot races, particularly Black candidates she believes can generate enthusiasm among Black voters.
Many believe that matters in a state with more Black eligible voters than any other in the country. About 2.7 million Black Texans are eligible to vote, according to the Pew Research Center, with large populations in Houston, Dallas-Fort Worth, and East Texas. Yet Democrats enter November without a Black candidate at the top of their statewide ticket.
So far, there is little evidence that Black voters are abandoning Talarico.
A Texas Southern University survey of Black Texans who had voted in recent elections found just 7% said Crockett’s primary loss made them less likely to vote in November. Other public polling has shown Talarico with a commanding lead over Paxton among Black voters.
But Crockett has questioned whether support for Talarico has translated into enthusiasm.
“I personally don’t feel like the excitement necessarily exists within the Black community right now,” Crockett said in August.
She said that is one reason she is putting her energy into races farther down the ballot.
“In my mind, the best way that I can help the people of Texas is if I go in and I help out on these down-ballot races because typically people rely on the top of the ticket to drag people in,” Crockett said. “I do have some amazing Black candidates that are running for office in some of the largest counties. So, if I can introduce Black folk to them, that may excite them and get them to the polls.”
Talarico, meanwhile, has stepped up his outreach to Black Texans since the primary, visiting Black churches, community events, and media outlets that reach large Black audiences. His campaign has also hired Black political strategists and Black-owned communications firms.
During a July town hall with Black voters in Houston, Talarico pledged $25 million toward Black voter outreach.
“There is no way to win Texas without showing up for, investing in, and listening to Black communities across this state,” Talarico said.
Some former Crockett supporters appear receptive.
“I am a Crockett supporter, but you sold me,” Houston precinct chair Earnest Babalola Goodrich told Talarico at the town hall. But he added, “I want to see more. I want you to earn that hard vote.”
Texas Southern University political scientist Michael Adams said Crockett’s decision not to actively campaign for Talarico could still matter, particularly because Black women have historically been central to Democratic turnout.
“Black women voters [have] been the staple or the buckle, as we like to say, of Black voters in particular [for] Democratic turnout,” Adams said.
Crockett performed particularly well with Black voters in Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston, and East Texas during the primary.
“If you look at the Dallas-Fort Worth area where Jasmine Crockett did very well, and also, she was able to gin up turnout in the Houston area and East Texas there,” Adams said. “That’s where you find Black voters.”
Adams said the concern is not necessarily whether Black voters prefer Talarico to Paxton, but whether enough of them will vote.
“Not having Jasmine Crockett, who would be able to gin up the Black turnout, will be something that may come back to bite Talarico and other Democrats.”
Michael Adams
“Not having Jasmine Crockett, who would be able to gin up the Black turnout, will be something that may come back to bite Talarico and other Democrats,” Adams said.
The primary also left some hard feelings. Race and gender became issues during the campaign, and Crockett argued she faced scrutiny that her white male opponent did not.
State Rep. Jolanda Jones, D-Houston, has said Democrats face a broader challenge with Black voters, particularly those who do not regularly vote.
“Black people, especially low-propensity Black people, feel like it doesn’t matter who gets elected, whether it’s a Democrat or a Republican, we’re going to get screwed either way,” Jones said.
For Talarico, that leaves a distinction that could become crucial in a close election: winning Black voters versus getting Black voters to vote.
