The southern state of Texas, a representative of the ``red states'' that are strongholds of the US ruling Republican Party, whose symbolic color is red, is turning into a fiercely contested state that is considered the ``Heavenly Mountain'' of the midterm elections. State Rep. James Talarico, 37, the opposition Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate, has gained more support than Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton, 63. Democrats hope to win the state's Senate race for the first time in 38 years and take control of the Senate.
◇The origin is the “classroom”
There is a middle school in a Hispanic (Latin American) residential area in the center of San Antonio that closed earlier this year due to the school district's financial difficulties. This is the school where Mr. Talarico, who has based his political activities on ``classroom experience,'' worked as a teacher for two years starting in 2011 through a non-profit organization that trains and dispatches teachers.
Laura Luna (43), a former executive of the organization, was in charge of the selection interview for Talarico, who was a university student at the time. I remember him using a three-legged chair in a mock class and explaining, ``If the legs are not aligned, the chair will fall.Each of the three powers is strong, and we need to work together.'' ``I thought that someday I would become an elected official.He had that kind of charisma,'' he recalls.
◇Hispanic recapture issue
Talarico, who is also a Christian seminarian, speaks about politics by quoting Bible verses that resonate with conservatives, and his strength is his ability to ``appeal across party lines'' (Luna). Mr. Talarico is running a community-based campaign without the support of Democratic Party leaders. The aim is to win back Hispanic voters who voted for President Trump in the 2024 presidential election in hopes of economic recovery.
"If we come together as Texans, not Democrats or Republicans, and defeat the most corrupt politician, we can defeat the entire corrupt system." On October 25, Mr. Talarico criticized Mr. Paxton, who was impeached for providing favors to donors (he was acquitted in the impeachment trial), at a rally in Weslaco, a border town in the southern part of the state where about 90% of the residents are Hispanic.
"I'm not voting just because Talarico is a Democrat," said college student Faith Gonzalez, 24. Juan Contreras, 23, an insurance salesman who was with him, added, ``He himself says it doesn't matter what political party you belong to.'' That's what I like about him.''
◇Department of moderate conservatives
Mr. Paxton, who is on the defensive, is asking for support from the ``outside.'' The Republican Party will hold its convention in Dallas in September. After the convention, Trump traveled to Texas a total of three times to give speeches of support. Elon Musk, a billionaire close to Trump, also invested nearly $200 million (approximately 31.5 billion yen) through affiliated political organizations.
"This race could determine who controls the Senate for years to come." Mr. Paxton stirred up a sense of crisis by branding Mr. Talarico an "extremist" at a rally held at a dance hall near San Antonio on the 23rd.
There were many elderly Trump supporters in the audience. Nathan Kane, 66, who is unemployed, praised Mr. Trump as ``doing a good job,'' and said, ``I hate what the Democratic Party represents.''
However, Paxton, who won the nomination by defeating traditional conservative incumbent John Cornyn in the primary with Trump's backing, faces concerns that moderate conservatives will defect. Neil, the younger brother of former President George W. Bush, has expressed support for Talarico. Former government official Jack Nunes, 63, said at the rally, ``Cornyn would have definitely won.''
