2026 Election: James Talarico, Ken Paxton tour Texas in final push
Talarico & Paxton's final election push
Early voting is now underway and the major candidates at the top of the ballot are not easing into a final push.
TEXAS - Early voting is now underway and the major candidates at the top of the ballot are not easing into a final push.
Greg Abbott vs Gina Hinojosa
Abbott and Hinojosa cast ballots
Monday, Oct. 19, was the first day of voting, and the candidates for Texas governor cast their ballots while taking political shots at each other.
The backstory:
Governor Abbott was in Houston, and his Democratic challenger Gina Hinojosa was in San Antonio.
Abbott and Hinojosa both voted early in Austin, and both threw some hard shots at each other before heading out.
2026 Election: Texas governor candidates cast ballots
Monday, Oct. 19, was the first day of voting, and the candidates for Texas governor cast their ballots while taking political shots at each other.
James Talarico vs Ken Paxton
What they're saying:
James Talarico, in an interview with FOX 4's Steven Dial, denied he has flipped flop on several hot button issues.
"Well, my positions have been the same. I haven't changed my position on any issue for the Senate campaign. And so, I know Ken Paxton doesn't have any line of attack, and so he's going to accuse me of changing positions, but that's not true," said Talarico.
Ken Paxton, at a north Texas bus tour stop, said voters could count on him to support major issues like voter security and parental rights.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Final push ahead of early voting
The midterm campaign is almost over. Early voting starts Monday, with several candidates this weekend launching one last big push for voters.
"While Talarico fights for his radical agenda, we fight for faith. Family and freedom.) And we fight for Texas," said Paxton.
Paxton, according to Steven Dial, will be getting more help from President Trump next week.
"A week before the election, the President is coming back to Texas now for a fourth time. He's going to be holding rallies in Waco and in Lubbock. And Ken Paxson will be at both rallies. This just signals to me that the president is concerned about this race," said Dial.
Big picture view:
The start of early voting brought another straight line party vote defection from another notable Republican. Outgoing Ag Commissioner Sid Miller released a scathing OP-ED letter against GOP nominee Nate sheets. Miller lost a bitter primary battle to Sheets, who was endorsed by Governor Abbott.
There has been a lot of talk about straight line voting, but that’s not legal anymore in Texas. There is no easy button, no single box to mark on the ballot.
State lawmakers, back in 2017, eliminated straight line party voting. The law faced several court challenges and was upheld in 2022. Voters will have to go candidate by candidate on their ballot.
The Source: Information from James Talarico, Ken Paxton, Battleground Texas, previous coverage and reporting by FOX 7 Austin's Rudy Koski