Texas’ two U.S. Senate candidates sit far apart on the political aisle. But there’s one issue that united Democrat James Talarico and Republican Ken Paxton this weekend: the federal gas tax.

Talarico and Paxton each issued their criticisms of the federal gas tax on Saturday, beginning with remarks from Talarico during a campaign event in Carrolton. Talarico called the war in Iran “disastrous” in remarks to the crowd in North Texas, and he urged Paxton to both oppose the war and support a plan to suspend the federal gas tax and the federal diesel tax.

Paxton outflanked Talarico in a statement released later Saturday, noting he supports a permanent elimination of the federal gas tax.

“Of course I support suspending the gas tax,” Paxton said. “In fact, I believe we should suspend it permanently. Repealing those taxes would put money straight back into drivers’ pockets every time they fill up, and Washington should fund roads by cutting waste, not by taxing Texans at the pump.”

The federal gas tax is 18.4 cents per gallon as of September, with prices running to 24.4 cents per gallon for diesel fuel. Gas tax funds are deposited into the Highway Trust Fund, which pays for federal highway construction projects. The average price of gas in Texas is $3.94 per gallon as of Saturday, per Texas Monthly, a 69 percent increase compared to September 2025. Diesel gas prices are up 53 percent to $5.90 per gallon.

Talarico and Paxton debated the gas tax through the media on Saturday. It’s unclear whether they’ll do the same face-to-face before November’s election. Talarico challenged Paxton to a debate last week during during an interview at The Texas Tribune Festival, in which Talarico said he’d welcome a debate moderated by Fox News’ Bret Baier.

Paxton has yet to respond to Talarico’s challenge as of Saturday.

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This article originally published at Texas Senate candidates united by one thing: gas tax suspension.