Talarico campaign poaches former Cornyn staffer in race against Paxton

Published August 18, 2026 2:01pm ET | Updated August 18, 2026 6:04pm ET



A former senior staffer for outgoing Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) has joined Democratic Texas state Sen. James Talarico’s U.S. Senate campaign in an unexpected cross-party move.

Jacob Smith previously served as Cornyn’s deputy legislative director and policy adviser for five years. But now he is working for Talarico’s campaign as deputy policy director.

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