Talarico endures tense exchange over Black voter support during Houston town hall

HOUSTON - Texas Senate candidate James Talarico faced intense pressure from at least one attendee of his town hall in Houston on Sunday.

Talarico took questions from the audience for more than 90 minutes Sunday, but the event came to a dramatic head after a campaign aide said he would only take one more question.

Kandice Webber, a political influencer who goes by wellreadblkgrl on Instagram, said she had driven 45 minutes to Sunday's town hall.

"Black people don't trust you for this reason, and you cannot win without us," Webber is heard saying in a video posted on her social media. "So you stay here, you answer our questions, or you suffer the consequences."

Talarico responded that he was happy to engage with her and that he appreciated her traveling for the event. 

"I did it for my people. Not for you," Webber said.

Talarico responded with, "That's wonderful, I think that's wonderful."

Crowd reactions were a mix of murmurs and cheers for Webber's comments.

"This is what this conversation is supposed to be about," Talarico said.

Texas Rep. Marc Weasey praised Talarico for speaking with Black Texas voters Sunday.

"254 counties in TX and 90 mins is excellent!" Weasey said on X "Like you said, ‘one attendee’….you will never, nor should you ever, make everyone happy. And, you never know who the one person might have been."

When asked about the exhange at a campaign event in Fort Worth, Talarico said there's no way to win Texas without Black Texans.

"We have to show up for, invest in and listen to Black communities," Talarico said. "We have had really honest and productive conversations about how to ensure every Black Texan feels represented by this campaign, feels a part of this movement."

Lawmakers and leaders criticize Talarico's efforts to win Black voters

Webber is not the only person questioning Talarico's efforts to earn the support of Black voters.

State Rep. Jolanda Jones said on social media that she had been trying to have "substantive conversation" about the issues facing the Black community, but said the conversation had not happened.

What they're saying:

"I want to be helpful to him if he’s willing to listen to and advocate for the Democrat’s most consistent voters – Black people," Jones said. "He has been unwilling to do that. Consequently, that conversation has never happened."

Jones said she invited Talarico to a "listening event" on Tuesday called "The Road to Blue Goes Through Black."

Ahead of last month's Democratic Convention, the Texas Tribune reported that Legislative Black Caucus Chair Rep. Barbara Gervin-Hawkins and other Black lawmakers and leaders sent a letter to Talarico asking for a clearer picture of his campaign's outreach to Black voters and strategy for the coming months.

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