“Democratic Texas U.S. Senate candidate James Talarico is a vegan.”

The assertion that James Talarico is a vegan has been used as a political attack line by his opponents, including Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and former President Donald Trump. However, the claim is not supported by evidence. Talarico has publicly and consistently denied being a vegan. In response to these claims, he stated, 'I’ve been eating barbecue since before Ken Paxton’s first indictment.' Furthermore, independent fact-checkers and media reports have documented instances of Talarico consuming meat, such as eating chicken, steak, and turkey legs. The confusion appears to stem from a 2022 campaign event where Talarico described his reelection effort as a 'non-meat campaign' in the context of promoting environmental sustainability and animal welfare, but he did not state that he personally follows a vegan diet.