January 5, 2026      3:50 PM

Braddock: US Senate Democratic primary could rip open old wounds from arguably the most difficult quorum break for Texas House Democrats

Primary voters, choose your fighter: In a moment portrayed by their party as an existential crisis, Rep. Talarico was among the first to collaborate with Republicans in ‘21 positioning himself to cut a deal for a new district that he could win while Rep. Crockett chose a different path leading to higher office

Texas House Democrats were absolutely miserable.

They faced threats of arrest while hiding out in a less-than-glamourous hotel out of state and fighting with each other in the midst of a protracted quorum break aimed at stopping – or at least slowing down – a Republican elections law overhaul that the minority party blasted as “The New Jim Crow.” Liberal groups aided by former Rep. Beto O’Rourke were demanding Democrats “hold the line.” O’Rourke raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for the Texas House Democratic Caucus’ effort, either to help them or to impose discipline, depending on how you looked at it.

Walking into the lobby of that not-so-great hotel, you could sense the tension among the members and quickly got the feeling there was no way they had the stamina to do this for more than a couple weeks. It lasted 42 days in the humid Washington heat.

This was 2021 not 2025.

In a moment portrayed by Democrats in Texas and nationally as an existential crisis, Rep. James Talarico and then-Rep. Jasmine Crockett, at that time both members of the Texas House, could not have handled the fight more differently. Now they’re each asking Texas Democratic primary voters for the chance to be their chosen fighter in the general election in November.

By Scott Braddock

Copyright January 05, 2026, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved