James Talarico publicly rejects controversial fellow Texas Democrat as conspiracy-filled rhetoric gains national attention

Texas – Texas Democrat James Talarico is drawing a hard line against a congressional candidate from his own party after a flood of inflammatory comments about Jews, Zionists, and political conspiracies pushed a San Antonio-area runoff race into the national spotlight.

Maureen Galindo, a housing activist and therapist running in Texas’ 35th Congressional District, has become one of the most controversial Democratic candidates in the country after repeated remarks involving “Zionist billionaires,” Jewish control of media and banks, and other rhetoric that critics across the political spectrum have condemned as antisemitic.

Now, as Galindo moves closer to potentially winning the Democratic runoff, Talarico has made clear he wants no connection to her campaign. “This antisemitic rhetoric has no place in our politics. We need leadership in both parties willing to stand up and call out hate wherever it rears its ugly head,” Talarico said in a statement to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency.

His campaign later confirmed he would not appear alongside Galindo or campaign with her if she becomes the Democratic nominee after the May 26 runoff election. The decision is especially notable because Democrats see the district as a possible pickup opportunity after Republican-led redistricting reshaped the area. But instead of focusing entirely on flipping the seat, Democrats now find themselves dealing with growing backlash tied to Galindo’s statements and online activity.

Galindo’s remarks spark widening fallout

Galindo first gained local attention through activism connected to affordable housing issues in San Antonio. A single mother and sex and family therapist, she entered the congressional race with very little money, reportedly spending around $11,000 during the campaign.

Despite that, she finished first in the Democratic primary with 29.2% of the vote. Her opponent in the runoff, sheriff’s deputy Johnny Garcia, received 27%. Some local progressives argued that Garcia’s support from Democratic Majority for Israel and his moderate image hurt him among anti-establishment voters, while Galindo benefited from portraying herself as an outsider fighting political elites.

Still, as more of Galindo’s comments resurfaced, criticism rapidly intensified. “It’s all very complex. But it’s my perception that Zionist billionaires run the world,” Galindo told the San Antonio Current after her remarks began attracting national attention. “They’re of all religions. But especially Israeli, Jewish billionaire Zionists who disproportionately and factually own a lot of Hollywood production studios, media companies and banks.”

On social media, Galindo posted statements including “ZIOS=GENOCIDAL EUROPEAN COLONIZER FREAKS.” She also referred to the “synagogue of Satan,” a phrase that has long been tied to antisemitic conspiracy theories.

During another social media post, Galindo wrote that if elected she would “write legislation so that all Zionism and support of Zionism is undoubtedly Anti-Semitic, since it’s Zionists harming the Semites.” She also suggested turning a local detention center “into a prison for American Zionists and former ICE officers for human trafficking,” before adding, “It will also be a castration processing center for pedophiles which will probably be most of the Zionists.” The comments triggered immediate outrage from Jewish organizations and Democratic figures.

Democrats distance themselves

Appearing on Texas Public Radio, Galindo denied accusations that she was antisemitic while continuing to target what she called “Zionist Jews.” “I’m not antisemitic. In fact my last serious relationship was with a Jewish man,” Galindo said. “I’m against Zionist Jews. When I said that the Jews who own Hollywood are doing this, do all Jews own Hollywood? No. The Zionist Jews do. The Zionist Jews own our media, our banks and all of our politicians.” She later added, “There’s plenty of evidence for what I’m saying in the Epstein files.”

Garcia strongly condemned the remarks during the same radio appearance, warning that the controversy risks driving voters away from Democrats entirely. “It gets people to sit out of elections and lose faith in the Democratic Party,” Garcia said. “And my reassurance to them was, look, I understand how bad we lost you in 2024. We saw people leaving our party in droves. … These comments, it’s hurtful, and it does nothing good for our Democratic Party.”

Democratic Majority for Israel quickly launched a six-figure advertising push supporting Garcia while attacking Galindo directly. “Maureen Galindo espouses vile, hateful views. She has claimed Jews ‘own Hollywood,’ that they ‘worship the synagogue of Satan,’ and accused Zionists of running human trafficking networks. Antisemitic conspiracy theories like these are disqualifying and have no place in either Party or in Congress,” DMFI head Brian Romick said.

The controversy has continued spreading beyond party leadership. Former primary rival John Lira withdrew his endorsement of Galindo after reviewing more of her public comments. “Over the course of the runoff, I have become increasingly troubled by a series of derogatory, inflammatory and conspiratorial statements directed toward Jewish people and others,” Lira said, while announcing he would “remain neutral in this runoff election.”

The situation has become especially sensitive in San Antonio, which has an estimated Jewish population of roughly 11,000 people. Community tensions were already high after a mass shooting threat targeted a Jewish community center last year.

As the runoff approaches, Democrats now face an increasingly uncomfortable reality: a race once viewed as an opportunity to expand the party’s influence in Texas has become overshadowed by a growing national controversy over extremism, conspiracy rhetoric, and the limits of political tolerance inside the party itself.