A new survey from the University of Texas and Texas Politics Project finds Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-TX) holding a 12-point advantage over Texas state Rep. James Talarico in the race for the Democrat nomination for U.S. Senate.
Texas Senate Democratic Primary
— InteractivePolls (@IAPolls2022) February 25, 2026
Jasmine Crockett: 56%
James Talarico: 44%@TxPolProject | 369 LV | 2/2-14https://t.co/41eD23vlHa pic.twitter.com/UUAHan2zAZ
The results mark an increase in Crockett’s standing compared to earlier surveys. A February poll conducted by the University of Houston’s Hobby School of Public Affairs showed Crockett leading Talarico 47 percent to 39 percent among likely Democrat primary voters, with 12 percent undecided. A December survey by Texas Southern University found Crockett ahead 51 percent to 43 percent.
Crockett has publicly expressed confidence in her prospects statewide. During a February 20 appearance on MSNBC’s Morning Joe, she claimed Democrats “absolutely” have a chance to win the Texas Senate seat and pointed to demographic growth in the state. “When I was in the state house and we drew the lines, we know that the state of Texas grew by a total of 4 million people. Of those 4 million people, we know that 180,000 were Anglos. The other 95% of the growth that took place in this state was people of color,” she said. “We know that the plurality in the state of Texas is Latinos with 41%. We know that we have more African Americans in this state than any other state, with 4 million. And we know that we have the fastest-growing AAPI community in the country.”
She added, “It’s not just Dallas County. It’s not just Harris County. It’s actually the counties surrounding those counties,” specifically naming Collin County and Kaufman County, and noting that “Tarrant County, at least at the latest reporting, was actually outvoting Republicans.”
In a February 16 interview on CNN’s The Lead, Crockett declared that “Independents and Republicans prefer me” over Talarico, citing “the most recent polling that came out from University of Houston” and arguing that “the numbers don’t suggest” she cannot win statewide. She also addressed outside financial involvement in the race, stating that her opponent “has a super PAC that is spinning against us with negative ads,” and added that “our governor, he decided to sink over $1 million into TV ads against me.” Crockett questioned the strategy, saying, “The Republicans say that they believe that I would be the one that they want. But when you look at their actions, who spends $1 million and don’t even go after the people that are running against him?”
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is investigating ABC’s The View over potential violations of equal-time rules after both Jasmine Crockett and James Talarico appeared on the program. Crockett received approximately 17 minutes of airtime across three segments, while Talarico appeared in a single nine-minute segment. Under FCC guidance issued in January, all legally filed candidates must be given comparable airtime. Crockett’s appearance occurred before the agency announced its policy enforcement.
Talarico was also scheduled for an interview on CBS’s The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, but attorneys for CBS determined the segment could not air. Colbert later posted the pre-recorded interview on YouTube because the FCC-enforced federal law requiring equal time for political candidates does not apply to online platforms.
Ahead of the online release, Colbert said the segment did not air on CBS because the FCC announced a pending investigation of Talarico’s recent appearance on ABC’s The View. FCC Chairman Brendan Carr in January called Colbert and similar shows “fake news” and suggested they are subject to the equal-time rule. Violations of the equal-time rule could lead to fines or the loss of broadcasting licenses, although offenders often are required to provide relevant political candidates with equal airtime.
