James Talarico softens stance on trans sports, sex surgeries, walks back previous claim: 'I missed the mark'

By Samantha Kamman, Christian Post Reporter Friday, September 11, 2026

Democratic U.S. Senate nominee James Talarico expressed an openness to banning sex-change procedures for minors and restricting trans-identifying male athletes from competing in women’s sports in some cases, while walking back his previous comments that there are more than two sexes. 

The Texas House of Representatives member running for U.S. Senate in Texas spoke with Fox News this week at a food drive campaign event in Dallas. During the interview, Talarico responded, “Absolutely,” when asked if he would vote in favor of a national ban on sex-change surgeries for minors. 

Talarico said that he has been “consistent on this issue,” claiming that his opposition to measures like Senate Bill 14 (SB 14) in 2023 is because he believed it was “overly broad." The bill, signed by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott in June 2023, prohibits physicians and licensed healthcare professionals from providing puberty blockers, hormones and sex-change surgeries to minors. SB 14 later went into effect in September 2023 after legal challenges temporarily delayed enforcement.

Democratic representatives, including Talarico, proposed 18 amendments to alter or narrow the legislation, all of which ultimately failed.

"If you go back and check, I voted for a major amendment to limit the bill to banning surgeries for minors," Talarico said. "As a lawmaker, my job is to try to sift through everything the bill does. And sometimes there's stuff in it that's really harmful, and I have no choice but to oppose the bill as a whole."

"It's why I try to use amendments to narrow the focus of the bill so that it does exactly what we intend it to do," he continued. "It's what I tried to do with that piece of legislation, and unfortunately, the amendment I supported was unsuccessful."

Talarico, who attended Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary, also addressed the issue of males competing in female sports, stating, "I oppose trans athletes playing in girls’ sports if it endangers safety or fairness."

"Every sport has to be safe and fair. As a former public school teacher, I care a lot about our student athletes. I care a lot about our students. And so, I will oppose trans athletes playing in girls’ sports if it risks safety or fairness," he said.

The Texas lawmaker’s comments appear to mark a reversal from his previous positions. 

While serving on the Texas House Public Education Committee in 2021, Talarico opposed Texas Senate Bill 29, which would have required public school athletes to compete in sports based on the sex listed on their birth certificate instead of their gender identity. 

Later that same year, Talarico voted against Texas House Bill 25, which would have enacted similar restrictions on school sports into Texas law.

The Democratic nominee’s comments have drawn skepticism from Riley Gaines, a 12-time NCAA All-American swimmer who became a prominent voice for female athletes after she was forced to compete against a man at the 2022 NCAA Championships.

In a Tuesday X post, Riley Gaines highlighted the portion of Talarico’s recent Fox News interview where he said he opposes trans-identifying athletes in girls’ sports “if it endangers safety or fairness."

“A total 180 from confidently stating there are 6 genders. Of course, he doesn't actually think this. He just knows Texas voters do,” Gaines wrote.

Talarico made the comment about six genders during a House committee debate in April 2021. The Democratic U.S. Senate nominee said in his latest interview with Fox News that he no longer believes there are six genders.

“I missed the mark on some of my past statements; I’ll be the first to admit it,” Talarico said. “What I meant is there are two sexes and there’s a small percentage of people with genetic abnormalities. Obviously I didn’t say it correctly. There are not six sexes, there are two.”

Attorney General Ken Paxton, the Republican U.S. Senate nominee, also expressed doubts about the sincerity of Talarico’s new stances. 

“James Talarico voted against TWO bills that would have prevented men from playing in women’s sports,” Paxton declared in a Tuesday X post. “He also called it a ‘far-right conspiracy theory.’ This is just the latest episode in James Talarico’s long saga of lies and flip-flops.”