Texas Senate hopeful Talarico under fire over resurfaced ‘Christian who hates Christianity’ remarks

Texas Democratic U.S. Senate candidate James Talarico is facing fresh criticism after audio from a 2021 podcast interview resurfaced in which he described himself as “a Christian who hates Christianity.”

The audio, shared by the Republican National Committee’s research arm, has intensified scrutiny over Mr. Talarico’s theological views as he faces Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in the November 2026 general election.

Mr. Talarico made the remarks as a guest on the “Activist Theology” podcast hosted by Roberto Che Henderson-Espinoza, a self-described nonbinary, transgender, Latinx theologian who previously taught courses including “Queer Theory and Theology” and “The Ethics of Liberation” at Duke Divinity School. The interview is dated March 2021. 

In addition to the remark about hating Christianity, Mr. Talarico told the hosts that his “whiteness” and “masculinity” limited his imagination about what was possible, praised his longtime minister, Jim Rigby of St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church in Austin, as a “true white traitor,” and argued that Christianity’s political power derives partly from the fact that opponents share the tradition.

“The reason I think Christianity can be powerful in our context in this country is because so many of our political opponents share that kind of, that tradition,” he said, calling Jesus Christ a socialist. 

Mr. Talarico also told the hosts he kept returning to Christianity despite his tensions with it.

“I always get drawn back into it because nowhere else, in no other political philosophy, in no other economic theory, do I find anything as truly radical or revolutionary as the teachings of that barefoot Rabbi,” he said. 

Mr. Talarico, 37, an eighth-generation Texan and former middle school teacher, won the Democratic primary in March 2026. He presents himself as a progressive Christian who rejects “Christian nationalism” and emphasizes economic justice and separation of church and state. He is also a Presbyterian seminarian and has not been shy about invoking faith on the campaign trail. 

The resurfaced audio is not the first time Mr. Talarico’s religious views have drawn controversy. He previously described God as “nonbinary” during a 2021 Texas House floor debate. 

Sen. Ted Cruz declared on social media last week that “Texas will never elect someone who thinks God is nonbinary,” referring to those earlier comments. Republicans have used both episodes to question the depth of Mr. Talarico’s faith as he courts voters in one of the country’s most heavily Christian states. 

During a Fox News appearance, Mr. Paxton questioned his opponent’s religious convictions directly.

“I don’t think he understands Christianity in any form or fashion,” the attorney general said on “Hannity.” 

The controversy arrives as the race remains extremely competitive. A University of Texas/Texas Politics Project poll released Tuesday found Mr. Paxton leading Mr. Talarico 43% to 42%, within the survey’s margin of error of plus or minus 2.83 percentage points, among 1,200 registered voters queried June 5–12. The result marked a significant improvement for Mr. Paxton, who trailed Mr. Talarico by 8 percentage points in the same pollster’s April survey. 

Mr. Talarico held commanding leads among independents and moderates, while the vast majority of Republicans — 84% — indicated they had moved on from the bitter GOP primary and would support Mr. Paxton. 

Mr. Paxton secured the Republican nomination after defeating incumbent Sen. John Cornyn in a primary runoff following an endorsement from President Trump. As of the end of March, Mr. Talarico’s campaign held roughly $7.5 million more cash on hand than Mr. Paxton’s, according to the Federal Election Commission.