Texas legislator James Talarico on Democratic walkout: 'It's time to fight back'

Texas state Rep. James Talarico (D) urged his party to "fight back" on Sunday as Democratic legislators left the Lone Star State in an effort to block Republicans from advancing House maps that would hand the GOP five extra pickup opportunities before the 2026 midterms.

“My Democratic colleagues and I just left the state of Texas to break quorum and stop Trump’s redistricting power grab. Trump is trying to rig the midterm elections right before our eyes. But first he’ll have to come through us,” Talarico said in a thread on the social platform X. "It’s time to fight back."

“They're turning our districts into crazy shapes to guarantee the outcome they want in the 2026 elections. If this power grab succeeds, they will hang on to power without any accountability from the voters. But Texas Democrats are fighting back,” he added in a video posted on the site.

The Democratic legislator, who has drawn attention recently after being featured on Joe Rogan's podcast, told NewsNation's "The Hill" show last week that President Trump and Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) "are trying to rig the next election."

“I know that sounds dramatic, but … now by redrawing the political maps, they’re trying to insulate themselves from the will of the voters," he said.

Talarico told KXAN late last week that he was open to breaking quorum to block the redistricting effort, but he called such a move a "last resort."

"Breaking quorum is an extreme step, and it’s not something that should be taken lightly," he said.

Texas state House Democrats said Sunday they were denying Republicans a quorum, or the least amount of lawmakers needed present in order to conduct legislative business, after a state House panel over the weekend advanced proposed congressional maps aiming to make Texas's district lines even friendlier to Republicans.

Texas House Democratic Caucus Chair Gene Wu on Sunday accused Republicans of "using an intentionally racist map to steal the voices of millions of Black and Latino Texans, all to execute a corrupt political deal."

“Apathy is complicity, and we will not be complicit in the silencing of hard-working communities who have spent decades fighting for the power that Trump wants to steal,” Wu added in a statement.

“We're leaving the state, breaking quorum and preventing Republicans from silencing our voices and rigging the next election. We are not fighting for the Democratic Party. We are fighting for the democratic process, and the stakes could not be higher. We have to take a stand,” Talarico said Sunday.

The Hill has reached out to the White House and the Texas Republican Party for comment.