With just a month to go until Election Day, the Democratic primary for the US Senate in Texas has become so tense that a TikToker’s accusations have rocked the race and caused a major backlash.
The incident began Sunday night when Morgan Thompson posted a video recounting what she says is a comment Texas state Rep. James Talarico made to her in a private conversation in January: that she called her one-time opponent, former U.S. Rep. Colin Allred, a “mediocre Negro.”
Talarico’s campaign released a statement from the candidate on Monday calling Thompson’s claims “a mischaracterization of a private conversation,” further explaining, “I have described Congressman Allred’s campaigning method as mediocre — but his life and service are not.” Thompson admitted that she did not have a recording and that they had previously agreed to treat their conversation as off the record.
But the allegation hit Talarico’s campaign on Monday, sending aides into a frenzy and prompting Allred — who dropped out of the Senate race when Rep. Jasmine Crockett decided to drop in at the last minute — to back her in the tight race, despite feelings he had in December that she had driven him out of the race by renewing her identity and identity issues. primaries and the Democratic Party more broadly.
Thompson claims Talarico, who is white, said, “I signed up to run against a mediocre black man, not a formidable, intelligent black woman.”
Talarico, in his statement, denying the exact wording as reported by Thompson, said: “I understand how my criticism of the congressman’s campaign could be interpreted given the painful legacy of racism in this country, and I care deeply about the impact my words have on others.”
In an interview Monday night, Allred told CNN that he thought the campaign’s statement was “an admission that he said what he said” and expressed surprise that he didn’t hear directly from Talarico.
“I’ve responded not just on my behalf, but on behalf of black candidates across the country that even if you lead by six points over your presidential candidate, you’re still called ‘mediocre,'” Allred said, referring to his performance in the 2024 Senate race compared to the state’s Kamala Harris. (Allred outscored Harris by about five points.)
What Talarico is accused of saying
Thompson told CNN she was drawn to Talarico’s campaign by a friend last fall and preferred him over Allred. After attending an event of his in Dallas, she began using her social media to pump him up. Talarico’s staff reached out about her video from the rally, she said, and soon passed along information such as fundraising numbers and clips from his online “Jubilee” debate to help.
“It was like a symbiotic thing. I wasn’t paid by the campaign at all,” Thompson said, however, “I was in constant communication with the campaign.”
Thompson said the relationship began to fray after he received a fundraising text for Talarico, signed by Democratic strategist James Carville, that urged Democrats to begin moving away from identity politics. Thompson said she saw it as an implicit criticism of black women, and that when she voiced her frustrations with the campaign, an aide offered to have a conversation with Talarico — either on camera for her to post or “off the record” as what was supposed to be a private conversation.
She says she opted for the less formal, off-the-record conversation. But she says she vividly remembers the exchange, which happened backstage outside Plano City Hall on Jan. 12. Thompson said he expressed concern about being associated with Carville and suggested he might be chasing a big name, prompting Talarico to say, “So you’re worried about me being sold?” She said she told him he was overlooking the racial dynamics he was in, prompting him to say, “I have blind spots.”
Campaign spokesman JT Ennis confirmed the association with Thompson — “the Talarico campaign is working with a lot of creatives in Texas to keep them updated on the campaign,” he said — and that they spoke before the Plano event. But Ennis told CNN that Talarico had no recollection of making any of those statements and that his version was backed up by an aide who they both said was in the room but was not available for an interview.
The conversation turned, Thompson said, when she mentioned online chatter in Talarico she was seeing from people who wished she had run for governor instead — an option she had considered before launching her Senate bid and was prompted to reconsider when Crockett entered the race late.
“Then he said, ‘I signed up to run against a mediocre black man, not a formidable, intelligent black woman,'” Thompson said, “That’s a direct quote.”
Thompson also accused Talarico’s campaign of trying to silence her, claiming her Instagram account disappeared and the Threads account was suspended within minutes of her posting a video about her claims. Thompson doesn’t know how that would have happened, she admitted, given that no one on the campaign has her password, but “There are too many factors at play. There are too many anomalies. The timing was so quick.”
As for Thompson’s claims about shutting down social media accounts, Ennis said, “No. We don’t have that kind of power, nor would we ever do that.”
How Allred responded
Shortly after Thompson’s video went viral, Allred posted her own video of Talarico.
“Let me give you some free advice, James,” Allred said. “If you want to compliment black women, just do it. Do it. Don’t do it while also destroying a black man.”
He also suggested that Talarico, a Presbyterian seminarian, has received unfair attention for his discussion of Christianity on the campaign trail and how Democrats can make inroads with religious voters.
“We don’t need you,” he said. “You’re not saying anything unique. You’re just saying by looking the way you do.”
The Senate primary is on March 3. Allred is also on the ballot that day in a House primary against Rep. Julie Johnson, which she entered after leaving the Senate race.
For more CNN news and newsletters, create an account at CNN.com