Texas Democratic U.S. Senate nominee James Talarico returned to the campaign trail Friday after an absence lasting nearly two weeks, ending days of speculation and criticism over his whereabouts. His reappearance followed what Fox News senior correspondent Eric Shawn described as an absence of 13 days on “Special Report.”

Talarico surfaced at the Austin City Limits Music Festival, where video showed him walking through crowds and greeting supporters. His campaign quickly used the appearance to swat away questions that had mounted during his time outside the public eye.

“Hate to disappoint the conspiracy theorists, but James is still alive and meeting with voters at ACL today,” Talarico’s primary spokesperson, JT Ennis, wrote on X.

The post included video of the candidate moving through the festival crowd. Still, the Friday appearance did not settle the dispute over exactly how long Talarico had been away from in-person campaigning.

Hate to disappoint the conspiracy theorists, but James is still alive and meeting with voters at ACL today.

— JT Ennis (@jt_ennis) October 9, 2026

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Talarico is challenging Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in a closely watched U.S. Senate contest. He had not appeared publicly in person at a campaign event since late September.

His last in-person event was a Sept. 26 news conference in Carrollton focused on rising gas prices. Talarico later attended a fundraiser in New York City on Sept. 28, and the following day said he had been diagnosed with the flu.

The campaign attributed his absence to a severe case of the illness. The prolonged pause nevertheless drew sharp criticism from Republicans, including President Donald Trump, who highlighted the missing candidate on Truth Social.

Trump declared that the Democrat was “MISSING IN ACTION.”

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“TalaFREAKo has been missing for 12 days! Now, after looking for him throughout all of Texas, and beyond, probably even weirder places than anyone would think possible, he put out a statement that he has the ‘flu,’” Trump wrote.

“12 days is a long time to rid yourself of the so-called flu bug. What’s going on?” Trump added. “We need a Senator that’s a proven Champion like one that has been, without question, the Greatest Attorney General in the History of Texas, and one of the Greatest in the U.S.A.”

Talarico’s campaign disputed the claim that he had been entirely absent from the campaign trail for nearly two weeks. His team said he participated in a Zoom meeting on Sept. 30 with the U.S. Hispanic Business Council after canceling an event that would have been held in person.

Because Talarico attended that virtual meeting, the campaign argued that his absence was closer to nine days. That defense did little to stop Republicans from turning the gap in public appearances into a campaign issue.

Paxton also targeted his opponent’s absence while speaking at a campaign rally in San Antonio. “Where is James Talarico?” Paxton asked the crowd.

The campaign said Talarico expected to return to a full schedule of appearances in person through the weekend. His return came ahead of an Oct. 14 CNN town hall.

WATCH:

New White House Press Secretary Katie Zacharia calls out James Talarico for disappearing for 13 days weeks before Election Day:

"They think they can hide these candidates and we wont notice. Becerra disappeared, Talarico has disappeared, its on purpose because they know they cannot continue letting them talk because they are destroying their campaigns" Facts, @KatieZacharia — Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) October 10, 2026

Talarico’s campaign also pointed to his previous activity across Texas before the illness interrupted his schedule. According to the campaign, he had already completed more than 100 public campaign events across the state before becoming sick.

The music festival appearance marked Talarico’s return to public campaigning as the Senate contest continued. It also gave his team a chance to answer days of Republican mockery, questions, and speculation with video of the candidate back among voters.

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