• Facebook
• Twitter
• Threads
• Flipboard
• Comments
• Print
• Email
• Add Fox News on Google

Democratic Texas Senate candidate says national party 'hostile' towards faith in red states

Texas Senate candidate James Talarico said the national Democratic Party is condescending towards people during an interview on Tuesday, and sometimes "hostile" towards cultural interests in red states.

Democratic Texas Senate candidate James Talarico said during an interview posted Tuesday that the national party was "condescending" to people, and sometimes is "hostile" toward cultural issues in red states, specifically religion.

"I’m not an expert on the national Democratic Party, but I will say, just from my observations, being in a red state, someone who flipped a Trump district and was able to build this kind of coalition: Our national party is pretty condescending to people," Talarico told The New York Times' Ezra Klein, who asked the Senate candidate how the national party could appeal more to Texans.

Talarico, a state representative who is running against Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas, in the Senate race, is a former middle school teacher and Presbyterian seminarian.

"You always hear this, especially if you are out on the coasts: Why do all these people vote against their material interests? You’ve heard that before, I’m sure. Such a condescending thing to say to somebody. It’s acting like they don’t know how to make decisions for their own lives, and they don’t know what they need," he said.

Democratic state Rep. James Talarico speaks during a campaign launch rally on Sept. 9, 2025, in Round Rock, Texas. (Brandon Bell/Getty Images)

JOY REID SAYS DEMS' BRAND TAINTED BY FOCUS ON TRANS POLITICS AND IMMIGRANTS, ABANDONED RURAL WHITE VOTERS

Talarico said people have interests outside their material interests, citing cultural, personal and spiritual interests.

"And the Democratic Party culturally, in many ways, has become hostile to some of these cultural values in red states and red communities — faith maybe being foremost among them," he continued.

"I don’t agree with everyone who shares my faith. I don’t agree with every member of the body of Christ, but I am part of that body, and we share something deeper than partisanship. We share something deeper than public policy. We share a commitment, a witness, a practice, a tradition, and that is an opportunity for connection," the candidate said.

Senate candidate James Talarico speaks during a campaign event in Houston, Texas, on Sept. 13, 2025. (Mark Felix/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

SENATE DEMOCRATS RECRUITING TOP CANDIDATES IN PUSH TO WIN BACK MAJORITY

Podcast host Joe Rogan urged Talarico to run for president during an interview on Rogan's show in July.

The Democratic state representative said shared faith can open doors for other conversations and said the party should focus on building relationships with people who aren't necessarily supportive of the party.

"So I would just advocate for our party to think about how to actually build real relationships at scale with people who aren’t with us yet. Not only will that, I think, lead to winning, and we have a moral imperative to win in a democracy. Because if you don’t win, you don’t get power. And if you don’t get power, you can’t make people’s lives better," he said.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE COVERAGE OF MEDIA AND CULTURE

Crockett, Talarico's chief opponent for the nomination, announced her Senate candidacy in December. 

Her campaign announcement included a videoplaying several soundbites of President Donald Trump attacking her. Crockett is one of the most outspoken members of Congress against Trump, who has carried Texas easily in all three of his White House races.

She has argued that she doesn't need to win over supporters of Trump to win in Texas, which hasn't elected a Democrat to statewide office in decades.

Rep. Jasmine Crockett arrives on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., on Dec. 17, 2025. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP

"Our goal is to definitely talk to people. No, we don't, we don't need to. Our goal is to make sure that we can engage people that historically have not been talked to, because there's so many people that get ignored, specifically in the state of Texas. Listen, the state of Texas is 61% people of color. We have a lot of good folks that we can talk to," the lawmaker said in December.

• ·女子排名：铃木爱夺冠升至74位 李旻智重回第三位
• ·植物大战僵尸融合版第27关怎么过关 第27关通关攻略
• ·胃口变好可能并非好事
• ·文昌国际航天城产业生态圈逐步成型 未来发力四大重点
• ·莱德马业2岁赛驹“蒙古神鹰”赛场首秀表现出色：“蒙古可汗”首匹上赛场的子嗣
• ·暗喻幻想真结局怎么达成 暗喻幻想真结局触发条件攻略大全
• ·性生活后能喝冷饮吗？
• ·供需两旺 中国电商物流指数再创年内新高
• ·脱下燕尾服 交响乐还能怎样被聆听？
• ·外国文学毕业论文范本
• ·世界女排大奖赛首日战图片 中国女排vs巴西女排比赛集锦
• ·世界女排大奖赛首日战图片 中国女排vs巴西女排比赛集锦
• ·升级桶站推进社区垃圾分类
• ·《塞尔达传说：旷野之息》下雨天攀爬技巧
• ·2023年北京卷高考作文题目：二选一
• ·王者荣耀灵宝名侦探套装获取方法 王者荣耀灵宝名侦探套装详细攻略