CORPUS CHRISTI — U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders on Saturday closed the Texas Democratic Convention with an anti-oligarchical speech that bookended two days of state Democrats railing against Republican state leadership and corporate interests that they say are making life untenable for working class Texans.
The Vermont lawmaker’s remarks largely focused on national politics, vowing to hold President Donald Trump accountable, tax the ultrawealthy and get money out of politics and holistically rebuking the status quo under a Republican-controlled Congress and White House. Repeatedly, the crowd approved his message — which echoed themes struck by state Democrats throughout the weekend — with roars of applause.
“You are building a strong grassroots movement,” Sanders said after taking the stage to a standing ovation. “And you are winning.”
Bracing for political headwinds leading into November’s midterm elections, top GOP elected officials wielded Sanders’scheduled appearance to connect Texas Democrats to the senator’s democratic socialist brand that they say is too far to the left for Texans.
On a highway leading to the Coastal Bend, billboards bought by Gov. Greg Abbott’s campaign depicted Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate James Talarico next to Sanders. A caption beneath the duo said, “You want socialism? Good luck with that.” Two weeks prior to the gathering, the governor said that selecting Sanders for the keynote address “sums up today’s Democrats more than anything else.”
But over the two and a half day gathering in Corpus Christi, it was clear Democrats are betting that leaning into the senator’s style — embracing the same economic populist ideas, such as high cost of living and unaffordable healthcare — will resonate with voters more than Republicans’ trying to cast them as radicals.
In speeches, caucus meetings and conversations, Democratic elected officials and public office seekers also condemned Republican state leaders who they say place the interests of right wing donors and billionaire business executives above all else, including the most urgent needs of Texans. Many used the same word, time and again, to describe state leaders: corrupt.
“We’ve lost our way because of a corrupt political system where corporate actors and lobbyists have unlimited money to influence politicians — in both parties,” Rep. Gina Hinojosa, the Democratic nominee for governor, said in her Friday night speech to cheers. “The result is that global corporate power has grown at the expense of opportunity for working Texans.”
Party leaders are prioritizing boosting Democrats’ optimism capitalizing off President Donald Trump’s low approval rating amid an unpopular war with Iran, massive immigration crackdown and an inflation-hampered economy.
They are also electrified by Talarico, hoping the Austin lawmaker’s fundraising prowess and popularity, paired with the vulnerabilities they see in his scandal-plagued opponent Attorney General Ken Paxton, can buck Democrats’ 32-year losing streak in statewide elections in Texas.
Virtually every mention of Talarico from speakers on the main stage generated a thunder of applause and cheers in the convention hall. The reception for Sanders was no different.
Even before the event, Democrats had dismissed the GOP critiques of hosting Sanders. Some pointed to the senator’s popularity among Latino voters, who have emerged as a crucial voter bloc in Texas after President Trump captured 55% of Latino voters in the state in 2024.
Central to the president’s gains were border counties, many that bore the brunt of record illegal border crossings during the Biden administration.
In the Rio Grande Valley, which is made up by four of those counties, residents were promised a better economy they have not yet received, said Julio Salinas, a 26-year-old former legislative staffer running for Texas House District 41 in the heart of the region.
Salinas, who received Sanders’ endorsement during his primary, is trying to tap into that dissatisfaction. In an interview, he said some of the policy proposals Sanders champions would meet many of the RGV’s anticipated needs over the next 10 years, such as investments in transportation and water infrastructure.
“Across the Rio Grande Valley and all across Texas as a whole, we’ve been talking about affordability,” Salinas said. “The cost of living is much too high.”
To be sure, Republicans are also talking about similar issues that Democrats are focusing on,, at times making the case that voters must keep them in office to keep Texas prosperous. But they are also still labeling Democrats as out-of-touch leftists.
In many speeches, Democrats said Republicans are the ones not understanding Texans.
The crowd jeered and booed when Rep. Jon Rosenthal of Houston, who is running for Railroad Commission, mentioned his opponent Bo French, a former Tarrant County GOP chair and culture war warrior who has drawn criticism from other Republicans at times for controversial and racist statements.
Sen. Nathan Johnson of Dallas, running for attorney general, name checked Tim Dunn, a West Texas oil billionaire and right wing megadonor who has backed French and other candidates who have pushed the Legislature further to the right. He also knocked Jeff Yass, a private school voucher advocate who donated $6 million to Abbott’s campaign in 2024 with a single contribution — which the governor’s campaign said was the largest single campaign donation in Texas history.
The Legislature passed a private schools voucher program last year, which also courted plenty of criticism over the weekend from Democrats vowing to overturn the program.
Meanwhile, Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor Rep. Vikki Goodwin of Austin accused Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick of taking a $3 million bribe, a reference to contributions the state’s second-in-command received from a group, in part led by Dunn, that opposed the 2023 impeachment of Paxton. The group contributed $1 million to Patrick and gave him a $2 million loan before the trial in the Texas Senate, which Patrick was set to preside over.
In an interview, Johnson said Republicans’ talking points have run their course and money can only get candidates so far. In November, he is set to face Sen. Mayes Middleton of Galveston, who won his primary over U.S. Rep. Chip Roy after pouring more than $16 million of his own money into his bid.
Johnson said he has found hope in special elections, city council races and school board contests that voters in the middle are voting for Democrats.
“I’m not being completely petty here, only just a little bit petty — I think the Republican slate is remarkably cartoonishly weak,” Johnson said, also noting that his opponent and other GOP candidates are tying themselves tightly to Trump. “It’s going to fall flat.”
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