Why you’ve been seeing TV ads for James Talarico in recent weeks

James Talarico essentially has had the airwaves to himself.

Since the beginning of June, the Democratic U.S. Senate nominee has spent more than $3 million on broadcast TV ads — more than double what Democrat Colin Allred spent in 2024 during a similar stretch. The big ad buys are all an effort to define himself to Texas voters before Republican U.S. Senate nominee Ken Paxton and his allies can.

Coming off an expensive GOP primary runoff in May, Paxton is still trying to replenish his campaign accounts and is spending mostly on less expensive digital campaign ads running on social media. Since the beginning of June, Paxton, the current Texas attorney general, has spent just $29,000 on ads, according to AdImpact, which tracks political campaign advertising.

One of the few TV ads Paxton’s campaign has put out aired in Corpus Christi during the Texas Democratic Convention. The spot reminded viewers, among other things, that Talarico voted against bills to ban transgender athletes from competing in women’s sports. 

But the thousands Paxton spent on that pales in comparison to the millions Talarico is spending in the big Texas TV markets. Talarico has bought time on local news programs, on high-ratings shows like Wheel of Fortune, and even during the World Cup in Houston, which cost $50,000 per ad. In one ad that has aired more than 1,700 times statewide, Talarico focuses on addressing the rising cost of groceries, health care and housing.

“Of course Talarico is spending big, he had three extra months to raise money,” Paxton campaign spokesperson Madison Cercy said. “We’re out raising the resources we need to define him down the road.”

That disparity between Talarico and Paxton on TV could last most of the summer.

Senate Republicans who aggressively backed Sen. John Cornyn in the GOP primary have yet to begin helping Paxton. Senate Majority Leader John Thune, who campaigned for Cornyn, suggested that since President Donald Trump helped Paxton win, he should pick up some of the financial weight of defending the seat for Republicans in November.

“We will do what we need to do to make sure the state stays red. But I’m certainly hopeful that the president, and the resources he can bring to bear, will be engaged,” Thune told reporters last month. “I think it’s gonna be an expensive race.”

Axios reported on Monday that Thune was planning to attend a fundraiser for Paxton later this month.

Trump is sitting on more than $350 million in a super PAC called MAGA Inc. that at some point could be used to help Republicans hold the House and Senate majorities.

But money doesn’t necessarily decide U.S. Senate races in Texas. In 2018, Democrat Beto O’Rourke vastly outspent U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz in their battle, and Cruz still won by nearly 3 percentage points.