Democratic Texas state legislator James Talarico emerged victorious Tuesday over loudmouth left-wing Rep. Jasmine Crockett following a ferocious US Senate primary marred in its final hours by allegations of voter suppression from both candidates.

With 91% of the expected vote tallied, Talarico, 36, had 52.9% compared to 45.7% for Crockett, 44, avoiding a bruising runoff campaign that would have lasted close to another three months.

“We’re about to take back Texas,” proclaimed Talarico, who will face the winner of the May 26 Republican runoff between incumbent Sen. John Cornyn and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.

“We are not just trying to win an election,” Talarico told supporters in Austin before the race was called. “We are trying to fundamentally change our politics. And it’s working.”

Texas voters have not elected a Democrat to the Senate since Lloyd Bentsen in 1988.

US Senate candidate James Talarico addresses supporters on election night on March 3, 2026, in Austin, Texas. Getty Images

Crockett’s campaign said she planned to sue over voting issues in Dallas and she spoke only briefly on Tuesday night to warn that “people have been disenfranchised.”

Republicans had openly hoped Crockett would win, viewing her as the less electable candidate in the Nov. 3 midterms, while Talarico is believed to have more crossover appeal to independents.

“We’re cheering for Jasmine Crockett,” Fox News host Sean Hannity said on air Tuesday evening while reading a results update from the Lone Star State. 

Crockett and Talarico had each argued that they would be the stronger general election candidate in a state that backed President Trump by almost 14 percentage points in 2024.

Results were reported later than expected after voting was extended by two hours in Dallas County — Crockett’s home base — and Williamson County, outside Austin, after voters reported being turned away and directed to different voting precincts because of new primary rules.

Paxton’s office challenged the judge’s decision keeping the polls open longer, and the state Supreme Court ruled that ballots cast by people not in line by 7 p.m. CT should be separated from others.

A supporter watches election results at Texas Democratic US Senate hopeful James Talarico’s election night watch party in south Austin on March 3, 2026. AP

“We encourage each and every one of you to remain resilient. We cannot allow this type of behavior to be rewarded,” Crockett told supporters earlier Tuesday night in praising the voting extension. “Because so long as they know that they can win — even if it means cheating — then they will continue to do it.”

The Texas Senate primaries were the most expensive races in US history, according to AdImpact, a digital media tracking firm, with more than $110 million spent on ads for the Democratic and Republican candidates.

Talarico had more than $17.6 million spent on his behalf for commercials, while Crockett only saw $4.3 million shelled out. Talarico also experienced a surge of attention — and donations — last month after CBS declined to air his interview with late-night host Stephen Colbert over concerns about running afoul of equal-time rules.

Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-Texas) speaks to her supporters during an election night watch party at Club Vivo in downtown Dallas on March 3, 2026. AP

Unusually for a Democratic primary, both main candidates came from a religious background.

Crockett is the daughter of a pastor and Talarico received a master of divinity degree at Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary.

But in terms of style and tactics, the two could not have been more different.

James Talarico greets supporters during his primary election night party. REUTERS

Crockett made her name by getting into viral clashes with MAGA lawmakers such as former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), whom she famously said had a “bleach-blonde, bad-built, butch-body.”

Despite her antics resembling those of a lefty populist, Crockett’s vote record was in the ideological middle of the pack for House Democrats. She also staunchly defended former President Joe Biden’s fitness for office and has taken digs at lefties like Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY).

Crockett jumped into the Senate race in December after Texas Republicans moved to redraw her Dallas-based seat.

US Senate candidate Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-Texas) addresses supporters at a campaign stop in Waco, Texas, Tuesday, March 3, 2026. AP

Not long after Crockett got in the race, former Rep. Colin Allred (D-Texas) dropped out and later endorsed her, claiming that Talarico racially slighted him by referring to Allred as a “mediocre black man,” a charge Talarico has denied.

Crockett’s brash public persona frequently landed her in hot water, as when she bashed Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, who has been confined to a wheelchair since the 1980s, as “Governor Hot Wheels” last year.

In August, The Post reported that staffers say the House member has cultivated a toxic work environment while acting “rude” and disengaged from her work.

Start your day with all you need to know

Morning Report delivers the latest news, videos, photos and more.

Thanks for signing up!

A staff member prepares for the election watch party for Texas state Rep. James Talarico (D-Austin), a Democratic candidate for the US Senate, in Austin, Texas, Tuesday, March 3, 2026. AP

While Crockett focused on running up the score among black voters in Dallas and Houston, Talarico held rallies across the state, including in heavily Republican areas.

“If you voted for Donald Trump but you are fed up with the extremism and the corruption in this government, you also have a place in this campaign,” he told voters while stumping in San Antonio on Sunday.

The tactic paid off, with a strong Election Day performance by Talarico — particularly among Hispanic voters in and around Austin and Corpus Christi — more than making up Crockett’s margins among those who voted early.