EAGLE PASS, Texas (AP) — The black campaign bus with “Talarico for Texas” across its side came to a steaming stop at Memo’s Restaurant along the U.S.-Mexico border. Bibi Valdez’s eyes lit up. She marched in heels over to the bus, phone camera trained on its door, chatting about the locals whose political leanings shifted two years ago. “A lot of people, for some reason, especially the Hispanics, changed to Republican,” she said as security guards created space for James Talarico, the Democratic U.S. Senate candidate. “I just don’t see what the logic was.” Talarico is on a quest to become the first Democrat to win a statewide election in Texas since 1994. Memo’s Restaurant was one stop on a winding trip along the border this month, where he was searching for support from the predominantly Hispanic counties that became national political curiosities after the 2024 election.
Once consistently Democratic, most had voted for Republican President Donald Trump, some by a lot, as Hispanic voters shifted to the right nationally. Along this stretch of border, residents and elected leaders alike tend to point to two reasons: the rise in both border crossings and everyday prices. One dropped dramatically since 2024, and it wasn’t the cost of eggs.While Trump has tamped down on illegal border crossings — once Democrats’ Achilles’ heel — the cost of living is still high, giving Talarico a topic he’s been hitting on repeat as he campaigns against Republican Ken Paxton, the Texas attorney general.
