James Talarico, the Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate, with State Rep. Ron Reynolds, right, meet with owners of Mikki’s Soul Food Cafe on Blodgett on Tuesday, June 30, 2026.
Joy Sewing
The lunchtime crowd was long gone by the time James Talarico walked through the doors of Mikki’s Soul Food Cafe on Blodgett Street.
The empty restaurant served a purpose as the backdrop of a grassroots campaign stop. The Democratic nominee for the U.S. Senate race dropped in to make his case to voters in Third Ward, one of Houston’s historically Black neighborhoods.
Their votes will matter. Polls show Talarico will need significant support from the Black community to defeat Republican nominee Ken Paxton. No Democrat has won a U.S. Senate seat in Texas in over 30 years.
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After Talarico ordered a plate of smothered chicken, two side dishes and a dessert to go, he sat down with state Rep. Ron Reynolds, D-Missouri City, to talk with the restaurant owners and a handful of neighborhood folks and take photos. It was a small, impromptu meeting that itself may have been a missed opportunity.
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Mikki’s Soul Food Cafe was a fitting place to meet with stakeholders who have questions and concerns about how Talarico will represent Houston and the Black community here.
Ideally, Talarico would have connected with Third Ward civic groups, church leaders, small business owners and even college students from nearby Texas Southern University.
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Unfortunately, there were not enough of those voters at the event.
Polls have Talarico tied in the race with Paxton. But since his victory over U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett in the March Democratic primary, there have been persistent questions whether the Austin lawmaker can win over the Black vote. Talarico, a former middle school teacher and seminarian, has leaned on progressive politics rooted in his Christian faith both on social media and the campaign trail.
After the stop at Mikki’s last week, Talarico was featured on radio station 93.7 The Beat, where he took questions and talked about the importance of outreach to the Black community.
In other recent Houston-area appearances, Talarico attended a Black Leaders Brunch in Houston in April, was interviewed on KCOH Radio in May with host Jerri P. Beasley, and visited Prairie View A&M University where he spoke with student leaders and university President Michael Sorrell.
“There is no way to win Texas without Black voters,” Talarico told the crowd in an interview at Prairie View.
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Voter turnout in November is crucial. Harris County has had a poor voting record for years, though there have been signs of momentum. In May, the county recorded the highest midterm primary turnout in its history, according to the Harris County Clerk’s Office.
Letitia Plummer, a dentist and the Democratic nominee for Harris County Judge, said she met with Talarico and his team during the Democratic Party’s state convention in Corpus Christi in June. Plummer herself won narrowly against former Houston Mayor Annise Parker in a May runoff.
“I do believe that he wants to earn the Black vote and that he realizes it’s not Jasmine’s responsibility to get him the Black vote. I just think that he needs somewhat of a listening session,” Plummer said.
She said Talarico has identified maternal mortality among his priorities as Harris County has one of the highest maternal and infant mortality rates in the nation, with Black women facing the highest pregnancy-related death rates in the country from 2016 through 2020. She noted there are many critical issues beyond that one.
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But as for voter turnout in November, Plummer is optimistic.
“I don’t think we’re going to have low voter turnout. I think Democrats are going to turn out. I do believe the Republicans will turn out as well. So many people are engaged and concerned,” she said.
Texas has the largest number of eligible Black voters, with nearly 3 million, followed by Georgia and Florida, according to Pew Research Center. Also, seven out of 10 Black people in the U.S. are eligible to vote, a higher share than Hispanics and Asian Americans.
“I recognize that oftentimes the Black vote is taken for granted because we are so engaged. But I think every voter is at a point where they want to know that their support is transactional — that they get something for their vote,” Plummer said.
She is urging voters to do their homework as well, to know the candidates and their ability to bring about change.
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“If elected as a county judge, I can’t control gas prices, but I can control our county jail. So we need to understand who and what we are voting for and and what power those in office have to make changes in our communities.”
Crockett has been criticized for not supporting Talarico enough. She endorsed him the morning after losing to him in the March primary. But she has not committed to actively campaign on his behalf, telling the Dallas Morning News in June that she has “no idea” whether she’ll do so.
What critics fail to get is that it isn’t Crockett’s job to deliver Talarico the Black vote.
That work belongs to him and his campaign.
Editor’s note: This story has been edited to include more information about Talarico’s campaign efforts in Houston, and the headline was changed to more accurately reflect its content.