Texas state Rep. James Talarico says his U.S. Senate campaign raised $64 million in the third quarter, setting a fundraising record for a Senate candidate. The campaign reported the total on Oct. 15, 2026, and said it has raised more than $134.3 million since Talarico launched his bid in September 2025. More than 1.3 million donors have contributed, according to the campaign, with about 97% giving $100 or less. Talarico cast the small-dollar support as a challenge to wealthy political interests and a way to address household costs. “Grassroots contributors from across Texas are coming together to end billionaire control over our politics and bring down costs for working families,” he said in a statement. The record is a major show of financial strength in a state where winning statewide office has long eluded Democrats. But fundraising totals alone do not settle the contest: Republicans are mounting an expensive effort to retain the seat, and about $235 million has already been spent against Talarico, according to the campaign coverage of the race. A Democratic strategist working in Texas, speaking anonymously, said Talarico was being outspent two to one by Elon Musk and the broader Republican fundraising network, describing the contest as an uphill fight. The source did not provide a breakdown of the spending figure. The GOP race has added to the contest’s political and financial stakes. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton defeated incumbent Sen. John Cornyn in a divisive Republican primary, prompting national Republicans to rally around the effort to hold the seat. Talarico’s third-quarter haul surpasses previous Senate fundraising records cited in the campaign report: former Texas Rep. Beto O’Rourke raised $38.1 million in the third quarter of 2018, and South Carolina Democrat Jaime Harrison raised $57 million in the third quarter of 2020. The announcement came after Talarico had been away from the campaign trail for more than a week with the flu. He returned to campaigning as the race entered a costly stretch, with both parties seeking to shape the outcome in a state Republicans have held at the statewide level for years.