A Texas Democrat caught on hidden camera told a woman posing as a supporter that his position on transgender issues “hasn’t changed” — just four days after walking back those views on Fox News.
James Talarico, the Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate, made the admission Sept. 13 at Houston’s Wheeler Avenue Baptist Church, according to undercover footage obtained by the Daily Wire.
The recording shows Talarico responding to a woman who asked whether he would defend her “niece who is trans” and her ability to compete in women’s sports.
Talarico’s answer was unequivocal.
“ALWAYS. THE WAY I FOUGHT FOR TRANS KIDS IN THE LEGISLATURE IS HOW I WILL FIGHT FOR THEM IN THE U.S. SENATE. AND MY POSITION HASN’T CHANGED.”
He went on to claim transgender sports eligibility should be decided locally — sport by sport, athlete by athlete — and insisted his approach remained the broadest in the race.
“I still think these should be local decisions, sport by sport, athlete by athlete, and I think I have the most inclusive policy of any candidate who’s running,” Talarico said. “So I know things are getting clipped and stuff, but my views, my position hasn’t changed.”
The comments came just four days after Talarico told Fox News on Sept. 9 that he opposed transgender athletes in girls’ sports.
“Every sport has to be safe and fair,” Talarico said in the Fox interview. “And so, I will oppose trans athletes playing in girls’ sports if it risks safety or fairness.”
During that same appearance, Talarico walked back his past claim that there are six biological sexes and pledged to “absolutely” support a national ban on gender-transition surgeries for minors.
As a Texas state representative, Talarico voted against Senate Bill 14 — the 2023 law restricting such procedures for minors — and against Senate Bill 29 in 2021, which would have tied school athletes to the sex on their birth certificates.
He has previously argued that such restrictions stem from a “Christofascism movement.”
Separate footage released by the Daily Wire shows a Texas Democratic Party manager, Jennifer Miranda, characterizing Talarico’s Fox News shift as purely strategic.
“RIGHT NOW HE’S TRYING TO TARGET A WIDER NET, WHICH UNFORTUNATELY MEANS BEING MORE PALATABLE TO REPUBLICANS HERE IN TEXAS. HE DOES BELIEVE THE THINGS THAT HE’S SAID BEFORE.”
Rev. Babs Miller, a minister at Talarico’s longtime Austin church, predicted in her own recorded exchange that he would revert to his original positions after the election.
Madison Cercy, spokeswoman for Republican Ken Paxton’s campaign, said the footage confirmed what Texans already suspected.
“James Talarico can’t outrun his own radical record, and this bombshell video proves it,” Cercy said. “Now, even he admits his position ‘hasn’t changed.'”
The undercover footage follows separate video obtained by Breitbart News showing Talarico’s pastor and mentor, Rev. Jim Rigby, welcoming atheists to his congregation.
Talarico faces Paxton in November.
🚨James Talarico Caught On Camera Saying His Transgender Views Haven't Changed
“The way I fought for trans kids in the legislature is the way I will fight for them in the U.S. Senate. My position hasn’t changed,” he said on Sept. 13. pic.twitter.com/qdiKT1oBWA
— Jacob Wheeler (@JWheelertv) September 29, 2026
