On the campaign trail
• Texas town hall: Democratic nominee James Talarico will take questions from voters tonight at a CNN and Jubilee Media town hall, just days before early voting kicks off in the Lone Star State. The race against Republican Ken Paxton is one of the most-watched contests on the map, and two new polls find no clear leader even as ad spending has surpassed half a billion dollars. Stream the town hall at 8 p.m. ET with an All Access subscription.
• Most expensive ever: Overall, ad spending for the 2026 elections has passed $10 billion as the midterms remain on track to be the most expensive of all time. That total includes campaign ads from all candidates, committees and outside groups across all midterms races, according to data from AdImpact.
• Funds ruling: Meanwhile, the federal judge overseeing a lawsuit over President Donald Trump’s taxpayer-funded ad campaign has extended her order prohibiting the ads until past Election Day.
Updates
(50)Texas Latino voters point to immigration and costs as key issues in Senate race
Immigration and the economy are top of mind for several voters in McAllen, Texas, as people are about to begin early voting in a key Senate race between Democrat James Talarico and Republican Ken Paxton.
Irma González, a restaurant owner, told CNN the crackdown on immigration enforcement is hurting businesses.
Talarico visited her shop where she makes homemade tortillas. González said her impression of him was that he “genuinely wants to help us.”
“I hope he wins and does something good — something better. I expect something good from him. I know he really will do something good,” she said.
González’s daughter, an American citizen, plans to vote and has encouraged others to turn out to the polls.
“I hope we make a difference,” Ana González said. Other young voters say affordability is also a top issue for them in the election.
Cecilia San Miguel, a college student, said she’s seen it “a lot with my parents” and the rising prices of gas and groceries.
Conspiracy theory about Talarico's campaign trail absence backfired on MAGA
James Talarico’s recent absence due to the flu last week sparked yet another MAGA conspiracy theory that quickly fell apart — that Texas Democratic Senate candidate was missing from the campaign trail because of a mental health episode.
Over just a few days, it went from an admitted rumor; to some like former Los Angeles GOP mayoral candidate Spencer Pratt claiming they had actual sources; to winks and nods from Talarico’s GOP opponent Ken Paxton and President Donald Trump; to right-wing sites covering the still-baseless claims; to some attempted independent journalism that has been repeatedly promoted by Elon Musk.
By Sunday afternoon, a pair of right-wing influencers shared audio of what they said was a call with a mental health center in Ohio seemingly confirming that Talarico had just been released from its facility.
The story then exploded on the right. But it just as quickly fell apart:
- The Bulwark and others obtained the full phone call showing the apparent employee had previously and repeatedly flatly denied any record of Talarico being at the facility. She only said the above quote after being unable to locate any records for a person who told her Talarico was her cousin and had been staying there.
- The timeline didn’t match up. The influencer said the call was placed on Saturday evening, so that would mean Talarico would have been discharged that evening. But Talarico had already appeared publicly in Texas the night before and did so again on Saturday night.
- The mental health center, called the Lindner Center of Hope, has now denied Talarico was ever there: “Representative James Talarico has never received treatment from Lindner Center of Hope.”
- Talarico says he has never been to Ohio.
Talarico has Democrats in Texas dreaming big and "a little bit nervous"
Democrats have been dreaming big in Texas for decades, awash in optimism that this could finally be the year to win a US Senate seat.
For the first time, lifelong Republican Pete Nodecker is joining them, planning to cast his ballot for James Talarico when early voting begins here next week.
In the final three weeks of the fall campaign, Talarico is seeking to build a coalition of voters to break a 38-year streak of Democrats falling short in their bid for Senate. He’s hoping to tap into the dissatisfaction of voters like Nodecker, who twice voted for Donald Trump, while motivating Democrats to believe in his ability to defeat GOP nominee Ken Paxton.
James Talarico has Democrats hoping for a potential Texas Senate seat pickup in his race against Republican Ken Paxton. CNN's Jeff Zeleny explains how Talarico will need to build a wide coalition to pull off a historic Democratic victory in the Lone Star State. James Talarico has Democrats hoping for a potential Texas Senate seat pickup in his race against Republican Ken Paxton. Stream the CNN & Jubilee Town Hall with James Talarico live tonight at 8p ET with an All Access subscription.
The modern ritual of Democratic optimism in Texas dates to at least 2002, when the party put together a “Dream Team” ticket led by former Dallas Mayor Ron Kirk, who ran for Senate.
In 2014, Democratic state Sen. Wendy Davis drew national fanfare as she ran for governor after a high-profile filibuster against abortion restrictions. Four years later, Beto O’Rourke shattered fundraising records and drew massive crowds as he challenged Republican Sen. Ted Cruz.
Through it all, Democrats came up short — and sometimes very short. O’Rourke remains the high-water mark, losing to Cruz by less than 3 percentage points.
Trump's approval rating hits a new low in Fox News poll
President Donald Trump’s approval rating has hit its lowest point in Fox News polling across his two terms in office just weeks before a critical midterm election gauges voter reaction to his party’s performance in control of Washington over the past two years, according to a new national poll.
The Democratic Party holds a nine-point edge over Republicans among registered voters nationwide in the poll’s measure of voter preferences in their own congressional districts, and nearly half say one reason for their vote for Congress will be to express opposition to Trump, compared with just 25% who say they’ll be voting to express support for the president.
The Democratic Party is widely seen as better able to handle a range of issues, holding leads outside the margin of sampling error on 11 of 14 issues tested. Notably, Democrats hold a broad 16-point advantage over Republicans as better able to handle inflation and prices, with a 12-point advantage on handling gas prices, and 10 points on corruption in government.
Republicans are seen as better able to handle crime (by 10 points) and border security (by eight points).
But voters nationwide remain skeptical that either party has a clear plan for dealing with the problems facing the country. Just 35% say the Democratic Party does, and 33% that the Republican Party does.
The Fox News poll was conducted online and by phone among 1,202 registered voters nationwide. Results for the full sample have a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 2.5 percentage points.
Republican appearing with Trump in Montana says it's all about turning out rural voters
Republican candidates appearing alongside President Trump during his midterm blitz face a dilemma: appearing with an unpopular president could be a liability, but ignoring him could look like a snub to his supporters.
In Montana, the Republican House candidate who Trump will appear with today, seemed to be looking for a balance.
Aaron Flint, a conservative radio host, said there were thousands of rural Republican voters who only cast ballots during presidential elections. He said Trump’s appearance would help getting rural voters to actually vote.
At the same time, one of Flint’s top promises to voters is fighting to end Trump’s war in Iran. He said today he hoped it was over by the time a new Congress is sworn in in January.
“I will fight to bring the Iran war to a speedy and conclusive end that eliminates the terrorist threat but also keeps the strait open as well,” Flint said.
Asked whether appearing alongside Trump was a gamble, given the president’s unpopularity, Flint punted. He said his rival, Democrat Sam Forstag, had been endorsed by equally divisive figures, including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
Texas Democratic voters "trying to remain optimistic" about Talarico's prospects
Democratic voters in Texas told CNN they were upbeat about James Talarico’s prospects over Ken Paxton, even as some acknowledged an air of caution that the state’s long pattern of voting GOP could dash Democratic hopes.
As she attended a Democratic fundraising event at a Fort Worth gallery, Joyce Franklin said she was working to stay positive in the final weeks of a nail-biting campaign.
“I’m trying to remain as optimistic as I can without being totally let down,” Franklin said, recalling the devastation she felt in 2024 when Trump won a second term. “I don’t want to set myself up for that disappointment again, but I think this time we finally have the right formula to move forward.”
The grandson of a pastor and a seminary student himself, Talarico talks far more about faith than most Democrats. As he campaigns, he sprinkles in verses from the Gospel of Luke, along with the argument that love is a stronger motivating force than hate.
Talarico has a master’s degree in theological studies from the Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary and is training to become an ordained minister.
Ken Paxton, Talarico's opponent, has been plagued by scandal
The race for Texas’ Senate seat is neck-and-neck with Democrat James Talarico trying to beat Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in the typically red state.
Paxton, a firebrand conservative defeated Sen. John Cornyn in a bitter primary campaign with help from President Donald Trump in the form of a last-minute endorsement. Like Trump, Paxton has survived impeachment, indictment and federal investigations.
But since then, Trump jokingly described Texas Republican Senate candidate as “a pain in the ass” during remarks in Denton, Texas, while Paxton was heard complaining about Trump and the national GOP hurting his campaign in leaked audio clips.
Paxton’s long line of scandals have been at the forefront of the race, with Talarico calling him “The Most Corrupt Politician in America.”
- Several months after taking office as attorney general in 2015, Paxton was indicted on felony securities fraud charges in Texas and was accused of misleading investors in a company years earlier.
- In 2020, a group of top Paxton deputies reported him to the FBI, voicing concern that he was abusing his office to help an Austin real estate investor and political donor.
- The claims by the whistleblowers were central to the Texas House’s decision to impeach Paxton in 2023. The Senate ultimately acquitted him of all 16 articles of impeachment accusing him of corruption and bribery.
- Paxton was also accused of infidelity and his wife, state Sen. Angela Paxton, filed for divorce last year, citing “biblical grounds.”
Paxton has often dismissed the allegations against him as politically motivated, and many of his supporters have been willing to overlook them because they like how aggressively he pushes a conservative agenda as attorney general.
Trump serves up red meat in Arizona MAGA stronghold
President Donald Trump rallied supporters in one of the reddest counties in the country Wednesday as he seeks to boost GOP Rep. Andy Biggs in the Arizona gubernatorial race.
“We won Arizona in a landslide,” Trump said of his 2024 victory, calling on voters to translate that support to Biggs. “You give some of those votes to Andy,” he said. (Trump carried Arizona by 5.5 points and Mohave County, where he appeared on Wednesday, by 55 points.)
Speaking on an airport tarmac with mountainous terrain and his new, Qatari-gifted Air Force One in the background, Trump criticized Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs, whom he accused of destroying the state.
The president catered to the border-state audience, highlighting his immigration policies as he warned that electing Democrats would lead to open borders and crime.
And he framed a vote for Republicans as a “vote for more money in your pockets, bigger paychecks for your families, lower taxes, less crime, a booming Arizona economy like you have right now, but more so, and no amnesty for illegal aliens.”
He added: “All you have to do is vote Republican and you’re going to have all of that and more.”
But Trump also dwelled on his professed ability to ace cognitive tests, his new plane, the 2020 election, his work to beautify Washington, DC, his construction projects and ranked choice voting in Alaska (where he appeared the night before), among other topics.And he brought the professional boxer Floyd Mayweather, Jr. to the stage to speak.
Attendees in folding chairs offered warm enthusiasm throughout the more than 90-minute event.
How Beto O'Rourke opened the door for Democrats like Talarico
Democrat James Talarico and Republican Ken Paxton are in a very close race for a Texas Senate seat.
Winning the race would go a long way for Democrats as they work to gain control of the Senate. Conversely, a Republican win could help them maintain control as other key races play out in various other battlegrounds.
Many Democrats remember the last close Senate election in Texas, when Democratic Rep. Beto O’Rourke came within 3 percentage points of unseating GOP Sen. Ted Cruz. That narrow margin helped usher in a new generation of Texas Democrats farther down the ballot, including Talarico.
Talarico and O’Rourke share some similarities. Like O’Rourke did in his 2018 campaign, Talarico is trying to be as inclusive as possible and made a direct appeal to Cornyn supporters earlier this year. “You have a place in our campaign,” Talarico wrote on X.
But unlike O’Rourke, who built momentum against Cruz in the final months of their race, Talarico has already cemented himself as a serious opponent. He raised $27 million in the first quarter, far more than O’Rourke did over the same period in 2018, and has run close to Cornyn or Paxton in polls testing hypothetical November matchups.
President Donald Trump also took a keen interest in defeating O’Rourke, like he is now doing with Talarico.
Trump says US "making a fortune" off higher oil prices
President Donald Trump highlighted how the United States is “making a fortune” off of higher oil prices, while Americans continue to pay high costs at the pump due to the ongoing war with Iran.
He quickly acknowledged it was a point that might come off insensitive to the “little person.” And the president later assured the rally crowd in Arizona that he was committed to returning prices to pre-war levels.
“Our country is making more money than it’s ever made because of the fact that oil is so high,” Trump said at the rally in Bullhead City. “Now they’re going to say, ‘Isn’t it terrible? He talked about the fact that he doesn’t care about the little person.’”
“I care more about the little person than I care about the big person. I care about the little person like crazy. But the fact is, because of the price of oil, Texas and Oklahoma, North Dakota, and all these places, we’re making a fortune,” he continued. “But I never talk about it because I’m not happy until we get the actual price of the oil down to where it was prior.”
Back in March, Trump touted that higher oil prices was a money-making opportunity for the US, given the country is the largest oil producer in the world. But that was when administration officials were still calling the gas price spike a “temporary disruption.” The message might not resonate as well with Americans who are paying $4.33 nationally for a gallon of regular and $6.30 for diesel today and facing widespread higher prices.
"I had the flu." Talarico on Sunday denounced speculation about his absence
James Talarico was seen at the Austin City Limits music festival and a Kacey Musgraves’ concert over the weekend after a 12-day absence from the campaign trail. The Texas Senate Democratic nominee’s campaign said he was getting over the flu. CNN's Jeff Zeleny reports.
Texas Democratic Senate nominee James Talarico on Sunday denounced the wide-ranging speculation about his whereabouts in recent days as Republicans seized on his absence from the campaign trail.
The state representative, who is locked in a tight contest with Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, said he had been working from home as he recovered and meeting with his team via Zoom. Talarico returned to public events over the weekend, seen speaking to attendees at the Austin City Limits music festival on Friday and in the front row of a Kacey Musgraves concert in Dallas on Saturday.
Paxton and his allies, however, have zeroed in on the Democrat’s absence during the final stretch of a race that could be critical to determining control of the Senate. Even after Talarico’s return to public events, Paxton continued to cast suspicion on his absence.
Talarico revealed he had been diagnosed with the flu on September 30 during a virtual appearance at the United States Hispanic Business Council, an event he was supposed to attend in person. He said he had started to feel under the weather and visited urgent care in Dallas.
Trump claims there is nothing he could do to lose MAGA support
President Donald Trump suggested Wednesday that he could do anything and not lose MAGA support.
Addressing supporters at an Arizona rally, he singled out a woman whose interview with Right Side Broadcasting Network he said he’d watched earlier.
“There was nothing I could do that this woman would not vote for me. She loved me,” Trump told the crowd.
“If they asked her, ‘If he murdered somebody, would that be okay?’ She would have said yes,” Trump added.
Trump made similar remarks at a rally in Clarksville, Tennessee, on Saturday, claiming he could “say the stupidest things” and still receive claps from his supporters.
“There’s such love. Like, I mean, it’s amazing. When you stand up here, it’s just like the love. I could say the stupidest things and you’d clap,” he said at the time.
At campaign rally in Az., Trump says leakers should be shot
President Donald Trump said at a campaign rally on Wednesday that people who leak sensitive national security information should be shot.
“In my opinion, leakers should be shot,” Trump told supporters in Bullhead City, Arizona. “To me, they’re, they’re the scum of the earth. The leakers are the scum of the earth.”
Trump has long decried unauthorized disclosures to the media, and his administration has waged an aggressive campaign to tamp down on leaks — including by issuing subpoenas to reporters, which First Amendment advocates have decried. The recent efforts have included asking officials to hand in their phones at the White House and subpoenaing New York Times journalists to try to identify sources in reports about the security deficiencies of a Qatari-gifted airplane meant to be used as Air Force One.
The president issued his latest incendiary rhetoric on the topic of authorized disclosures while he claimed that details surrounding US strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities in June 2025 –– including the movement of American military aircraft –– were leaked. The Iran war has generally toughened the midterm environment for Republicans, driving fuel prices up and forcing the Trump administration to justify its decision to get involved in the first place.
“They ought to go to jail and be shot for the rest of their life,” Trump said of the alleged leakers.
Trump tells Arizona supporters he never intended to seize Greenland by force
President Donald Trump on Wednesday appealed to his supporters by claiming that the media blew his ambitions for Greenland out of proportion and that he was never considering taking the Arctic island by force.
“You know, we took a lot of heat from the fake news back there,” Trump said at a rally in Bullhead City, Arizona, as he hits the trail to turn out base voters, some of whom have been skeptical of his foreign entanglements.
“They said, ‘What a terrible way to talk about Greenland! This is terrible.’ Remember, they thought I was going to send my military out to attack Greenland. I wasn’t, but I complained about it very strongly to NATO, and really strongly,” he added of the media.
For years, Trump had suggested annexing the self-governing territory. Shortly before taking office for his second term in 2025, he didn’t rule out seizing Greenland by force, claiming it was vital for US security. Earlier this year, however, he ruled out military action in remarks to the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
Trump’s latest comments come just one month after he announced the United States, Denmark and Greenland reached an agreement that gives the US “permanent control” over Greenland’s security but leaves the island under Danish control.
Why some Texas voters aren't sold on Talarico
Marvin Rodak, who owns a coffee roasting and auto repair business in Fort Worth, told CNN he was carefully following the Senate race and remained undecided as the campaign entered the home stretch.
He said he was frustrated by the tariff whiplash from the Trump administration and record diesel prices, but also uncertain that he wanted to see Democrats control the Senate.
He said he was concerned by Ken Paxton’s legal and political baggage, but not sold on James Talarico’s ability to do the job without undue influence from Democratic leaders. He said he intended to carefully study both candidates before reaching a decision.
“I think every election is an opportunity to send a message,” Rodak said.
Rodak is the kind of voter who Republicans are intensely targeting in the final weeks of the race, hopeful they will come home once they learn more about Talarico.
Republicans win at Supreme Court in fight over TV ad rates
The Supreme Court on Wednesday sided with a Republican effort to lower television campaign ad rates for political parties, rejecting an appeals court decision that would have subjected the Federal Communications Commission to faster judicial review of its decision making.
The upshot is that party committees like the National Republican Congressional Committee will continue to pay a lower ad rate than in past elections.
The court handed down a brief, unsigned opinion explaining the decision. Liberal Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Ketanji Brown Jackson dissented.
At bottom, the dispute is about whether party committees, like the campaign arms of the House Democrats or the Senate Republicans, should be entitled to the same lower ad rates that federal law reserves for individual candidates. The FCC in March decided that both candidates and party committees should pay those lower rates for broadcast advertising, usually the most expensive part of a campaign.
While the FCC change applies to both Republican and Democratic party organizations, the shift would benefit the GOP more because of the way it raises money. That explains why several Democratic candidates for Congress challenged the FCC change and several Republican groups are defending it.
Sensing that the FCC was delaying a decision on a formal objection from Democrats and effectively running out the clock so that the change would remain in place for the November midterms, the Richmond-based 4th US Circuit Court of Appeals ordered the commission to resolve the pending application within 48 hours. But the Supreme Court on Wednesday said that the there was no deadline for the FCC to resolve that objection.
Trump's last-ditch efforts to stymie oil prices hit brick wall
President Donald Trump and Republicans today got the worst news on inflation ahead of the midterms: Prices rose more than expected in September.
The news came as no surprise to American voters. Polls show they’re furious about the high cost of living that has persisted since the pandemic but has been exacerbated this year by Trump’s policies — including tariffs and, primarily, the Iran war.
To alleviate some of the price pain, the Trump administration has been diving deep into its bag of tricks. Over a month ago, the US Navy began a high-stakes effort to assist tankers shuttling Gulf oil out of the Strait of Hormuz. And in a hail-Mary attempt, Trump last week announced a controversial deal to drop some sanctions on Russia to import a relatively small amount of the country’s diesel.
Iran and its Houthi allies are now undermining both of those operations. An increase in attacks on tankers and oil infrastructure over the past week has sent oil and diesel prices higher. The disruption has sent transits through the straits of Hormuz and Bab al-Mandeb falling sharply after mostly recovering to their pre-war levels.
The Trump administration was never going to solve the inflation problem in the month leading up to the midterms. But its last-ditch effort for some positive news on prices has run face-first into a brick wall this week.
More than $10 billion has been spent on campaign ads for the midterms
Ad spending for the 2026 elections passed $10 billion on Wednesday, as this year’s midterms remain on track to be the most expensive of all time.
That total includes campaign ads from all candidates, committees and outside groups, across all midterms races — federal, state and local, from US Senate to state ballot initiatives, according to data from AdImpact.
And it’s well ahead of the amount spent on campaign ads at the same point in the last midterms, three weeks out from Election Day, when voters had seen just under $6 billion worth of advertising.
According to AdImpact projections, the 2026 midterms are expected to see more than $11 billion spent on ads when it’s all said and done. So if you’re tired of campaign ads, unfortunately, there’s about a billion dollars’ worth yet to air.
Democrat Troy Jackson will rally with Dropkick Murphys in Maine on Friday
Dropkick Murphys are getting on the campaign trail for Democrats.
Troy Jackson, a Democratic Senate nominee in Maine, will host a rally with the band and the AFL-CIO on Friday to encourage voters to get out to the polls ahead of the third week of early voting in the state.
For Ohio’s 7th Congressional District, Dropkick Murphys will rally for Democratic candidate Brian Poindexter.
Today's top headlines from the campaign trail as midterms enter final weeks
Election Day is only 20 days away and candidates in key battleground states are hitting the campaign trail, hoping to gain an edge in their respective contests.
In Texas, two new polls show no clear leader in the Senate race between Democrat James Talarico and Republican Ken Paxton, where ad spending has surpassed half a billion dollars.
In just a few hours, Talarico will take voters’ questions at a CNN and Jubilee town hall at 8 p.m. ET.
If you’re just joining us today, here’s what’s happened on the campaign trail so far:
Trump rallies:
- Arizona: President Donald Trump attended a rally in bright-red Mohave County today. A visit here just weeks before Election Day is consistent with the Trump team’s midterm strategy to bolster turnout among his MAGA base.
- Montana: The president’s primary focus for traveling to the Big Sky State is the House race in the Western district garnering national attention. The race pits Aaron Flint, a conservative radio host, against Sam Forstag, a 32-year-old union leader and former Forest Service firefighter. Once expected to be an easy GOP win in a reliably red district, the race has grown more competitive.
The latest on campaign advertising:
- The federal judge overseeing a lawsuit over Trump’s taxpayer-funded ad campaign has extended her order prohibiting the ads until past Election Day. The extension of the temporary restraining order is notable given the perception that Trump used the ads to boost the Republican Party in the midterm elections.
- A Democratic outside group has begun airing campaign ads in Kansas and South Carolina as the party pushes into Republican territory in the final weeks of the 2026 midterms. The group, New Deal For All, launched a pair of ads today, one for each state’s Senate race.
- GOP Rep. Ashley Hinson, Iowa Senate candidate, released an ad in which she stressed that she voted in favor of the bipartisan bill that forced the Justice Department to release files related to late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Democratic opponent Josh Turek released an ad that claimed, “Hinson helped keep the files hidden.” More broadly, Epstein has been invoked in more than 160 ads — overwhelmingly by Democrats this election cycle.
- Meanwhile, Michael Whatley, the GOP nominee for Senate in North Carolina, has $0 in remaining TV ad reservations for his battleground race, according to AdImpact data.
Democrats’ election observation plan:
- Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Democratic Sen. Alex Padilla announced a plan to send more than 100 Democratic Senate staff to nine battleground states, amid concerns the Trump administration could intervene in the process.
CNN’s Brian Stelter, Kevin Liptak, Betsy Klein, Annie Grayer, David Wright and Kaanita Iyer contributed to this report.
