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Democrats Target Republican Strongholds as Midterm Election Countdown Continues
With the midterm elections just 19 days away, Democrats are targeting traditionally Republican states as both parties ramp up spending and campaigning in the final stretch.
President Donald Trump is traveling the country to support Republican candidates, but some races that Republicans once considered secure are becoming more competitive.
In Texas, Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico is challenging Republican Ken Paxton. Texas has not elected a Democrat to statewide office since 1994, but polls cited in the report show Talarico leading Paxton.
Talarico’s campaign announced it raised $64 million in the third quarter, which would be a record-breaking amount. NBC News said it could not independently confirm the figure before campaign fundraising reports were due to the Federal Election Commission.
Republicans are also defending a Senate seat in Kansas, where Trump plans to campaign next week. Democratic candidate Adam Hamilton is challenging Republican Senator Roger Marshall and says recent polls show his campaign within striking distance.
Meanwhile, Republicans spent more than Democrats on political advertising in September, according to AdImpact, and are directing money toward districts Trump won by wide margins.
Democrats are bringing in former President Barack Obama to help counter that spending. Obama is recording campaign ads for several Democratic candidates and plans to campaign in battleground states Ohio and Michigan next week.
Early voting is already underway in many states as Senate and gubernatorial candidates prepare for debates and make their final appeals to voters.
By: NBC Palm Springs
October 15, 2026
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James Talarico is advocating for a solution to immigration enforcement that rejects "the extremism on this issue in both parties." Talarico said, "Joe Biden failed us during his administration." And now, under the Trump administration, Talarico said there is a "different kind of extremism" in enforcement.