Democratic U.S. Senate candidate James Talarico plans to hold a statewide food drive as Republicans gather in Dallas for President Donald Trump’s midterm convention.
The initiative, dubbed the “Love Thy Neighbor” food drive, is designed to draw a sharp contrast with the Republican gathering happening in the same state.
Talarico is running against Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton, and rising grocery prices have become a central theme of his campaign messaging.
“Next week, billionaire mega-donors and their puppet politicians will gather at a convention in Dallas to clink champagne glasses and toast their own corruption,” Talarico said in a statement.
He added that attendees are “paying $20,000 for entry to a Billionaire Ball celebrating corrupt tariffs, billionaire tax breaks, and a new forever war that are all driving grocery costs through the roof.”
“In the shadow of this Billionaire Ball, we’ll be collecting food to help Texans struggling with rising grocery prices,” Talarico said.
Talarico has also framed the GOP convention’s choice of Texas as a defensive move, saying Trump and Republican leaders picked the state because they fear losing political ground there.
He dismissed the Dallas gathering as an attempt to blunt what he described as a growing “bipartisan backlash” against “extremism and corruption” across the country.
RNC Chairman Joe Gruters has described the convention as a “Trump-a-palooza” themed event, though Republicans have privately expressed concern over steep attendance costs and scheduling conflicts with the NFL season opener.
Several recent polls show the Talarico-Paxton race within the margin of error, making it one of the more closely watched Senate contests heading into the midterms.
Talarico holds a significant fundraising advantage over Paxton, with the latest FEC reports showing he raised $31.6 million compared to Paxton’s $9.3 million in the second quarter of 2026.
The fundraising gap has drawn national attention to the Texas race and reinforced Democratic hopes that the state could be more competitive than in previous election cycles.
