Democrat Senate candidate James Talarico has landed himself in hot water for his decision to outright cancel an event with black Texans during his time away from the campaign trail.
DEEPLY DISAPPOINTED: A Black civic group in Texas says Democratic Senate nominee James Talarico's campaign canceled an Oct. 5 event with 325 registered attendees, leaving the organization with what it described as "irrecoverable financial loss." The Central Texas African American Civic Engagement Symposium told Talarico's campaign it was disappointed by the cancellation and said efforts to reschedule had not materialized. The dispute comes as Talarico faces questions from some Democratic activists about the rollout of his $25 million Black voter outreach pledge, with one Austin-area operative telling Fox News Digital that promised resources have yet to materialize in some communities. Full story here https://t.co/IfisAz8gZE
— Fox News Politics (@foxnewspolitics) October 16, 2026
"Black civic group blasts James Talarico over canceled event: ‘deeply disappointed,' says Talarico campaign caused irrecoverable financial loss' for group" By the way, where is the $25 million for black voter outreach he promised? https://t.co/NRTImzRy0c
— Zach Kraft (@ZachKraft_) October 16, 2026
Talarico was slated to hold an event with the Central Texas African American Civic Engagement Symposium on October 5, but suddenly canceled the appearance while claiming to be sick with the flu. According to Fox News, more than 300 Texans had signed up to join the event. Organizers claim that the campaign did not attempt to reschedule his appearance, leaving the group with an “irrecoverable financial loss.”
“While we understand Representative Talarico’s health required priority, we are deeply disappointed by the campaign’s decision to issue a flat cancellation rather than committing to a rescheduled date," the group told the Talarico campaign. "It was a missed opportunity for Representative Talarico to directly address community skepticism and demonstrate the sincerity of his commitment to Central Texas African Americans."
A Democrat operative who spoke to Fox News also complained that the campaign has not delivered on promised funds for black outreach in the state. The operative claims that $25 million was designated for black outreach, but the group has only received one to two percent of that, “and then it's been silence since.”
Talarico has been struggling immensely to gain support with black voters across Texas. What hasn’t helped is his apparent lack of willingness to engage with members of the black community. Just days ago, Talarico abruptly abandoned a web call with a group focused on securing the black vote for Democrats without providing listeners with an explanation.
James Talarico — who Jasmine Crockett called a racist — leaves in the middle of a zoom focused on gaining support from black voters. https://t.co/stO8aZvVlV
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) October 13, 2026
Still, Talarico has been desperate with his outreach to the valuable voting bloc. In mid-August, Talarico claimed that the Texas justice system was built upon systematic racism which resulted in Karmelo Anthony, who killed Austin Metcalf at a high school track meet, being convicted of murder.
James Talarico says Karmelo Anthony was convicted because "there were no black members of the jury" and the "system is not working for black Texans." Karmelo Anthony stabbed 17-year-old Austin Metcalf to death for absolutely no reason. And @jamestalarico sides with the killer. https://t.co/kFIPWiMxp2
— Brandon Gill (@realBrandonGill) August 20, 2026
Early voting across Texas begins in just three days, while Election Day is 18 days away.