President Donald Trump and Democratic U.S. Senate candidate James Talarico held dueling rallies across Texas on Tuesday, one week before the midterm elections, and both campaigns drew large crowds to Lubbock, a West Texas city that has long been a Republican stronghold.4,6,7
Trump held two rallies in Texas, the first in Corpus Christi and the second in Lubbock, as he leaned on football star power to turn out Republican voters for Ken Paxton, the Texas attorney general who is Talarico's Republican opponent in a highly competitive Senate race. It was Trump's fourth trip to Texas.3,4,6,7
Talarico has held a small but steady lead over Paxton in most public opinion polls this fall. Democratic candidates seeking statewide victories must drive up support in places like Lubbock, which has proved to be a firewall for Republicans. Democratic momentum has been fueled in part by dissatisfaction over the cost of living, the spread of data centers in rural Texas and other issues such as school funding.6
Talarico spent the day hopscotching West Texas, headlining rallies in Midland and Amarillo before a rally in Lubbock at the Fiesta Center. Paxton held events in Sherman, a small town about 65 miles north of Dallas, and then went to Amarillo. Before Lubbock, Trump had been in Corpus Christi, the seat of Nueces County, which Democrat Beto O'Rourke narrowly won in 2018.6
Thousands of Republicans gathered outside the Lubbock Memorial Civic Center to hear Trump, some draped in American flags and others wearing sequined cowboy hats. Across the street, about two dozen protesters waved signs supporting Talarico or opposing Trump. A few miles away, scores of Talarico supporters lined up at the Fiesta Center in a line that wrapped several city blocks.6
Ken Adams, chairman of the Lubbock County Republican Party, said Trump's appearance was a significant moment for the city and for Republicans in West Texas. “It's almost like the Super Bowl,” Adams said before Trump's rally. “You feel the energy, the excitement, and you think of a coach that gets the team fired up right before they run out of the tunnel and take the field.”6
Drew Landry, a political science professor at South Plains College in Levelland, offered a different view of the visit. “Democrats right now are very motivated to go out and vote,” Landry said. “So how can you stem that tide? You get the creator of the MAGA movement to come to MAGA country.”6
Trump spoke for more than an hour, repeating familiar attacks against Talarico. He claimed that Talarico and Democrats would repeal the Second Amendment and that millions more people would pour in from the U.S.-Mexico border. “So if you go out and vote, we’re gonna have a tremendous win in Texas,” Trump said. “You cannot have a guy like Talafreako, because he’s not even Christian. We can’t lose the votes.”6
Inside the venue, the crowd chanted “USA” and booed mentions of Talarico. Texas House Speaker Dustin Burrows, a Lubbock native, told the crowd that Austin is “the craziest, most blue progressive place there is.” The crowd booed in response. “If Lubbock doesn’t vote, if Amarillo doesn’t vote, if all the other great cities and counties do not vote, Travis County gets to decide what our state is all about,” Burrows said.6
Lubbock Democrats read the rally differently. “It feels like the Republicans are running scared,” said Kim Gonzalez, the Lubbock County Democratic Party's secretary. “Why would they come to Deep Red Lubbock if they weren't a little scared about what's happening in Texas? Things are changing.” C.C. Lawrence, a Texas Tech University student who protested outside, called Trump and Paxton criminals and said the way the Epstein Files were handled was unacceptable. She also cited gas prices and the war in Iran. “These forever wars suck up our resources and eat up taxpayer money and make billionaires richer,” Lawrence said.6
Talarico took the stage at about 8:30, shortly after Trump finished his speech. A campaign spokesperson said more than 4,000 people had signed up for the rally, and the campaign changed locations to accommodate them. “I know that we’re not the only show in town tonight, and I appreciate all four thousand of you that showed up here this evening,” Talarico said. “That’s a lot of Talafreakos in one room.”6
Talarico promised to lower the cost of housing, groceries and healthcare, and said those costs had been inflated by the Trump administration's policies. Riley Rodriguez, a Democratic state Senate candidate, also addressed the crowd. “West Texas shows up,” Rodriguez said. “We (will) take our state back for the people.” Beto O'Rourke, from El Paso, regularly visited the region during his unsuccessful U.S. Senate and gubernatorial campaigns, and Democrats said Tuesday that this was their time.6
The reporting did not describe Paxton's remarks at his events in Sherman and Amarillo. With one week until the midterm elections, Lubbock resident Loretta Davis said she plans to vote this week and that Trump's speech made her more motivated to go. “I’m so happy with all the things that he’s done and everything that he’s doing,” Davis said. “Especially closing the border and helping everybody come together in the United States.”6
