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Democratic Senate candidate Texas state Rep. James Talarico speaks at an election night event in Austin, Texas, Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026. Credit: AP Photo/Eric Gay
by Jack Jenkins - Religion News Service / November 4, 2026
(RNS) — Asked Tuesday night (Nov. 3) about state Rep. James Talarico’s victory in the Texas U.S. Senate race, the Rev. Jim Rigby, who has long pastored the Presbyterian church Talarico grew up in, said he was still grappling with the moment.
“It’s just too surreal,” Rigby said, who was watching the returns from home. “It’s going to take a while to completely take that in.”
But Rigby, a staunch liberal who has long advocated for immigrants and LGBTQ+ people, also reflected on what he sees as the broader dynamic of Election Night, which saw Democrats such as Talarico—himself a Presbyterian seminarian—win sweeping victories across the country.
“There’s an awakening taking place,” he said. “It’s not even so much one religion as opposed to another religion, but an idea that everybody counts.”
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