James Talarico and Gina Hinojosa made a final appeal to Texas voters at a rally in Dallas as both Democrats face closely fought contests with just days remaining before the 2026 midterm election.
The joint event at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Centre on Thursday formed part of the candidates’ closing efforts to mobilise supporters before early voting ended on Friday. Talarico is running for the US Senate against Republican Ken Paxton, while Hinojosa is challenging Republican governor Greg Abbott.
The two races are being closely watched in a state where Democrats have not won a statewide election for more than 30 years. Recent polling has placed Talarico narrowly ahead of Paxton, while Hinojosa remains slightly behind Abbott.
Democrats make final push in Texas race
Hinojosa described the final rally as “bittersweet” after a year on the campaign trail, while arguing that the result could have consequences far beyond Texas.
“The stakes could not be higher in this fight,” she told supporters. “If we choose to forge a new way forward together, then because we are Texas… the rest of the nation will follow.”
Both candidates focused their speeches on public education, the cost of living and allegations of political corruption. Talarico said his travels across the state had brought him into contact with families struggling financially.
“Over the past year, I have travelled to every corner of the state, from Beaumont to El Paso, from Amarillo to Brownsville, and everywhere I go, I meet Texans who are drowning,” he said. “We have an affordability crisis because we have a corruption crisis.”
The Democrats also attacked their opponents over links to wealthy donors, including Elon Musk, accusing billionaire-backed political groups of trying to shape the outcome of the election. Talarico said more than $200 million was being spent by megadonors and super PACs to defeat them.
Hinojosa has separately brought a legal challenge seeking access to communications between Abbott’s office and Musk. A lower court initially granted her access, but the Fifteenth Court of Appeals later ruled that the governor was not required to comply. Abbott’s office has dismissed the case as “a sham lawsuit in a rigged district court”.
Paxton has continued his own final campaign tour, appearing at events across Texas and sharing rallies with Donald Trump earlier in the week. He was in Beaumont on Thursday for his “Come and Take It” tour.
As the final speaker in Dallas, Talarico urged supporters to treat the closing days as a decisive test of their campaign.
“This is the last play of the last drive, Dallas,” he said. “This is the moment we leave it all on the field. We are the underdogs.”
In-person early voting in Texas ran from October 19 to October 30, with the general election due to take place on Tuesday, November 3. Polls are scheduled to be open from 7am to 7pm on election day. ([sos.state.tx.us](https://www.sos.state.tx.us/elections/voter/important-election-dates.shtml?utm_source=openai))
