A new ProPublica and The Texas Tribune investigation found Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico voted in five elections using his parents' address after purchasing a home in a nearby neighborhood, weeks after he accused Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton of committing voter fraud over his own voting address.
The investigation, which reviewed Travis County records, found the Texas state representative bought a home in June 2022 but did not change his voter registration address for more than two years. His current address is redacted from public records, but Talarico's campaign has previously said he lives and is registered to vote at the home he owns in North Austin.
The investigation also found Talarico's home is in the same county as his parents' residence and within the state House district he represents, but it falls under different jurisdictions for some local elections.
When asked for clarification, Talarico's campaign declined to answer questions about his residency and voting history, including when he began living at the home he owns, ProPublica and The Texas Tribune reported. Campaign spokesperson JT Ennis said Talarico's address was redacted because "right-wing actors" had threatened to locate him and his family.
Asked about the apparent discrepancy between Talarico's voter registration and residency, Ennis instead criticized Paxton.
"This is a lame attempt by Ken Paxton to deflect from his own hypocrisy and career of corruption," Ennis said in a statement, referring to Paxton's legal troubles.
In late July, Talarico accused Paxton of committing voter fraud after reports alleged the attorney general used an address where his estranged wife, state Sen. Angela Paxton, lived even though he had not lived there for two years.
Paxton later accused Talarico of lying about his residency to commit election fraud and "hold onto power," citing reports that suggested the Democratic candidate had not lived in the district for at least a year when he was elected to the Texas House in 2022.
However, The Texas Tribune noted that records provided by Talarico's campaign showed he complied with the residency requirements during the period referenced in the report cited by Paxton.
Texas law requires residents to vote where they live so they cast ballots for the officials who represent them. However, Andrew Cates, a Texas ethics attorney interviewed by the outlets, said the law's residency provisions are "broad and vague." Courts have previously ruled there is no single test for determining a voter's residence, and prosecutors must prove a voter intentionally violated the law to bring a criminal case.
When asked about his own case, in which he allegedly voted six times over a two-year period while registered at a Collin County home where he apparently no longer lived, Paxton's spokesperson Madison Cercy told the outlets Talarico was "the only person who has committed voter fraud in the Texas Senate race" without providing evidence to support the claim.
Matthew Wilson, a political science professor at Southern Methodist University, told the outlets the two cases illustrate how easy it can be to "run afoul of the letter of the law."
"I think it could be reasonably used as a charge of hypocrisy against either of them because both of them have condemned the other for an action quite similar to what they themselves appear to have done," Wilson said.
