Democratic U.S. Senate candidate James Talarico told CBS News Texas that electability is the key issue in his race against Jasmine Crockett for their party's nomination. "I think that is the central question in this primary. Who can win in November? Congresswoman Crockett, who I deeply respect, is going to be making her case. I'm going to be making my case. But every Democratic voter who shows up in this primary needs to have one question to have one question on their mind, and that is who is best positioned to win in November because if we don't win, we can't help people. We can't fight back against Republican extremism."

Talarico and Crockett, along with all candidates in Texas, are sprinting toward the March 3rd primary. Early voting begins Tuesday, February 17th and runs through Friday, February 27th. A new poll by Emerson College Polling and Nexstar Media out Thursday shows Talarico, the State Representative of Austin, ahead of the Dallas Congresswoman by nine percentage points, 47 to 38 percent. Fifteen percent remain undecided. A poll last month by Texas Southern University showed Crockett ahead of Talarico by nine percentage points.

Talarico held a town hall last Monday in Plano, where his campaign said he attracted two thousand people. His campaign said he has 13,000 campaign volunteers statewide to knock on doors and that he raised a total of $13 million through December 31st. When asked how those results would translate to a victory in the primary Talarico said, "Our campaign has all the momentum, and you see it at these events all over the state, from Beaumont to El Paso, from Amarillo to Brownsville, and everywhere in between including as you mentioned in Plano.. You also see it in our fundraising."

When asked why primary voters should choose him over Crockett, Talarico said, "I think I bring something unique to this primary race. I have a history of winning tough races and flipping difficult districts. I first won a seat in the Texas legislature by flipping a Trump district in a county that was so red it hadn't voted for a Democrat for President since Jimmy Carter. I did that by building a big tent, energizing Democrats to show up and vote, inspiring young voters to show up who hadn't participated before, and also peeling people off from the other side. Moderates, Independents, and yes, some disillusioned Republicans."

Crockett wrapped up a bus tour last week in the Rio Grande Valley, San Antonio and Corpus Christi. She and Talarico are set to square off in their first debate coming up at the AFL-CIO convention on Saturday. Senate Minority leader, Democrat Chuck Schumer, said last week while his party has a stronger path to retake the majority in the Senate this year, Texas is not among the states included in their path to victory. The Congressional rating service, Cook Political Report considers the Senate race "Likely R."

In the Republican primary for U.S. Senate, the Emerson College Polling-Nexstar Media poll showed Attorney General Ken Paxton with a one percentage point lead over incumbent Senator John Cornyn, 27 to 26 percent. Congressman Wesley Hunt of Houston has 16 percent. Twenty-nine percent remain undecided.

Last week, Politico reported that President Trump has no plan to endorse Senator Cornyn at this point — despite the requests by not only Cornyn but other key Republican Senators. The poll numbers from last week and before may explain that.

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