The final week of one of the nation’s most fiercely contested and expensive U.S. Senate campaigns brought Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton and Democratic state Representative James Talarico to opposite sides of the same western Texas city on Tuesday evening. Thousands of supporters packed into separate events in Lubbock, striking contrasting tones while delivering the shared message that the political future of Texas and the country hinged on the vote.
For Mr. Talarico, the appearance in a reliably conservative region was designed to court independent and centrist Republican voters who may be disaffected with their party. Although Lubbock County favored President Trump by roughly 70 percent to 30 percent in 2024, the city of approximately 250,000 residents and Texas Tech University contains significant pockets of Democrats. Thousands lined up at the Fiesta Center, snaking through nearby neighborhoods to hear Mr. Talarico speak.
“We’re going to shock the nation, shock the world, when we beat the billionaires and take back Texas,” Mr. Talarico told the cheering crowd.
Across town, Mr. Paxton held his event with the backing of President Trump, whose visit to the Lubbock civic center marked his second appearance in the state that day following an earlier rally in Corpus Christi. President Trump spoke for more than 90 minutes, framing the contest in national terms before inviting Mr. Paxton to the stage toward the end of the address.
“On election night, Texas is going to prove that America does not belong to those who hate it,” President Trump told the crowd. “America belongs to those who love it.”
Mr. Paxton delivered brief remarks during his appearances in Corpus Christi and Lubbock, focusing largely on his day traveling alongside the president. Despite the high-profile support and more than $150 million in campaign spending by Elon Musk benefiting his bid, Mr. Paxton has trailed Mr. Talarico in most recent polls.
Signs of anxiety were visible among some conservative figures at the events. State Comptroller Don Huffines warned the crowd during the Tuesday gatherings that Republicans were “getting beat bad by the leftists” and urged attendees to be concerned about the outcome.
Mr. Talarico actively leveraged the involvement of President Trump and Mr. Musk against his opponent throughout the campaign trail, using their high-profile backing to drive fundraising efforts and critique the flood of negative advertisements across the state. In his speech, Mr. Talarico told supporters that television attack ads and direct mail pieces could be traced directly to Mr. Musk’s financial backing.
The Lubbock rallies followed a similar close encounter a week prior in Fort Worth, where both campaigns held events just miles apart. As both candidates make a final push across Texas, the race continues to draw heavy national attention and substantial financial investment with Election Day now only days away.
