Democratic Senate nominee James Talarico has been the subject of intense scrutiny from Texas Republicans this week, who have demanded to know his whereabouts and claimed he has disappeared from the campaign trail altogether. But not to fear: It appears after 12 days without a public event, Talarico is alive and well after all.
Texas journalist Andy Langer posted photos of the candidate gladhanding backstage at the Austin City Limits Music Festival, which is kicking off its second weekend.
Langer posted another video of Talarico wandering the festival grounds with campaign staff and photographers. Talarico’s last public, in-person event was a fundraiser in New York City on Sept. 29, though he did appear virtually at an event with the U.S. Hispanic Business Council on Sept. 30. There, Talarico revealed he had been diagnosed with the flu the night before in Dallas.
“I guess I’ve been shaking too many hands on the campaign trail, and so I want to keep everybody safe,” Talarico said. “If I was passing on this illness to somebody and got someone’s grandmother or baby sick, I… couldn’t live with myself.”
JT Ennis, a spokesperson for the Talarico campaign, told the Texas Tribune this week that Talarico would return to the trail this weekend for more campaigning. Talarico also has a town hall event scheduled for next week with CNN. In a statement to CBS News on Friday, Talarico’s campaign did take a jab at Paxton.
“It’s been 84 days since James challenged Ken Paxton to come out of hiding and answer Texans’ question in a debate, which even President (Donald) Trump called on him to do this week. Ball is in Paxton’s court,” Ennis said.
When asked for comment, Ennis referred Chron to a post on social media.
“Hate to disappoint the conspiracy theorists, but James is still alive and meeting with voters at ACL today,” Ennis wrote on X.
Talarico previously agreed to four debates with Paxton, including one on conservative news channel Fox News. Paxton has yet to agree to any. Trump, while attacking Talarico over the absence from the campaign trail, called for the two to debate.
Chron reporter Abigail Rosenthal, who was on the ground at ACL on Friday, confirmed that Talarico was spotted on the grounds. Speaking to the Austin American-Statesman on Friday, Talarico told reporters he visits ACL “every year” and that he’s most excited to see hardcore band Turnstile and popstar Natasha Beddingfield.
The national right-wing had gone into a frenzy over Talarico’s absence from the trail, which has seen influencers and politicians alike speculate as to what’s “really” going on with Talarico. Spencer Pratt, a failed candidate for mayor of Los Angeles who has since taken to becoming a conservative influencer, claimed early Friday that Talarico “is in a mental health facility” and that it was “time to pray” for the candidate. Kari Lake, the failed Republican nominee for Arizona governor who has since taken a job in the Trump administration, joked online that Talarico was undergoing a gender-affirming surgery usually reserved for transgender women.