Voters of Tomorrow, the nation’s largest Gen Z-led voter engagement organization, is endorsing Democrat James Talarico for US Senate, Courier Texas has exclusively learned.
The endorsement comes less than four weeks before Election Day, as Talarico faces Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton for the seat now held by Sen. John Cornyn, whom Paxton defeated in the Republican primary. Control of the Senate could run through Texas. Republicans hold the chamber 53-47, so Democrats need a net gain of four seats to take the majority.
Behind the endorsementen
“James Talarico represents a hopeful future for young people across Texas,” said Santiago Mayer, the group’s founder and executive director. “He isn’t afraid to stand up to billionaires and corporate interests who are putting our generation in harm’s way.”
Mayer said young voters share Talarico’s priorities of “getting money out of politics, holding corrupt politicians accountable, lowering the cost of groceries, and finally making life in Texas and across the country affordable.”
“James Talarico is a leader young voters can be proud to vote for,” he said.
‘We have the numbers’
Mayer, a Mexican immigrant who became a US citizen this summer, founded the group, which says it has more than 11,000 members and chapters in more than 25 states. It says it reached more than 34 million voters during the 2024 election cycle.
This cycle, as Courier reported in July, the group has invested $1 million in reaching new voters.
“Nearly 50 million members of Gen Z are eligible to vote in 2026,” said Kaya Jones, the group’s senior director of programming. “Right now we have the numbers, we have the energy, and we have a generation that has shown again and again that we are willing to fight for the future we believe in.”
“If our votes weren’t so powerful,” Jones said, “they wouldn’t be trying so hard to keep us from the ballot box.”
Early voting in Texas runs Oct. 19–30. The deadline to apply for a mail-in ballot is Oct. 23. Election Day is Nov. 3.
