Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-TX) on Tuesday poured more cold water on Democratic primary rival James Talarico’s campaign, raising fresh doubts about whether he can win November’s closely watched Senate race.
In an interview with NBC News, Crockett said she isn’t buying the flurry of polls showing Talarico within striking distance of — or even leading — Texas Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton in the closely watched U.S. Senate race that could flip the balance of power in Washington.
With a few months until Election Day, the traditionally safe red seat looks increasingly competitive. Three public polls released in the last week show Talarico narrowly leading Paxton, raising concerns that a bruising Republican primary may have left the GOP nominee vulnerable in November, The Daily Wire reported.
A Fox News poll released last week found Talarico leading Paxton 51% to 48% among registered voters. A Texas Public Opinion Research (TPOR) survey of likely voters found Talarico ahead 45% to 40%, while the latest survey from the Barbara Jordan Public Policy Research and Survey Center showed Talarico leading 47% to 45%.
Even as Republicans sound the alarm, Crockett says she isn’t sold on the Talarico hype.
“I don’t know,” she said when asked whether she thinks Talarico can turn Texas blue. “I watch money.”
“When I look at the money, if Republicans start spending money in Texas, then I’ll be convinced. But right now, national Republicans decided they wanted to dump money into North Carolina, as well as Georgia. That’s where they’re fighting, and national Democrats have not decided to dump money into Texas either… I look at: where does the NRSC stand? Where does DSCC stand? Right now, neither one are investing, which tells me that their internals are saying the same thing,” she told NBC reporter Sahil Kapur.
Since her bruising primary loss, which she has labeled a “racist race,” the Dallas-area congresswoman has repeatedly declined calls from fellow Democrats to campaign for Talarico.
“I won’t get on the ground to really start to feel it until maybe end of September, October, as I start to dig into which races I’m going to help out in, the races that I really feel like we can win,” she told NBC.
Crockett’s skepticism of Talarico comes as the Senate hopeful, who has sparked backlash for his fringe views on Christianity, affection for transgender children, and disdain for the American flag, struggles to energize black voters.
Some black activists have threatened to tank his campaign over what they describe as his failure to engage black voters and organizations following the perceived snubbing of Crockett. At least one elected black Texas Democrat has already predicted Talarico will lose.
“Do I think that Talarico’s refusal thus far to engage black electeds and the black infrastructure has put him at a disadvantage? Absolutely, because there’s not a lot of time to try to rally us,” Texas State Rep. Jolanda Jones, a Democrat, warned in a recent interview.
“Talarico needs to pay for us to get our voters out. Only then does Talarico have a chance to win,” Jones said. “If he continues to do what he has been doing, I believe Talarico is going to lose.”
