On Maher's Show, Cruz Says Talarico Would Win Texas If the Election Ended Now

Sen. Ted Cruz carried his Texas warning onto national television Thursday night. Appearing on Real Time with Bill Maher on October 30, Cruz was asked whether Democratic state Rep. James Talarico would beat Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton in Tuesday's Senate election, and he did not pretend certainty: he said he hoped Talarico would not win, but he was unsure of the result, according to Primetimer's account of the conversation.

Cruz explained that more Democrats than Republicans voted during early voting, and that Talarico would win if the election ended at that point — but that many Republicans still had the chance to vote on Election Day, and the result depended on how many turned out. If Republicans did not turn out in large numbers, he warned, Talarico and other Democrats could win every statewide election in Texas. Of the Republican nominee, Cruz said: "I'm not going to convince you to love Ken Paxton, but you got to admit Talarico, I think, is a very weird dude," calling him "the ultimate woke social justice warrior." The appearance echoed the alarm Cruz raised on his own podcast this week, as early voting closed Friday with Democrats threatening Republican dominance across the state.

The two also argued over former FBI Director James Comey's 2025 Instagram photo of seashells arranged to spell "86 47," which prosecutors alleged was a threat against President Donald Trump. Maher pressed Cruz on whether Comey was really signaling assassins: "It was a message in seashells to the assassins?" Cruz said he was not sure whether the case against Comey would go anywhere, but that he had never seen a head of the FBI calling for the assassination of a president, and he noted that Trump has already faced two assassination attempts.

Early voting in Texas ended Friday, October 30. Election Day is Tuesday, November 3, when Harris County vote centers are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.