GOP Ads Against Talarico Face Conservative Parent Pushback for Bringing Transgender Issues Into Family TV Time

One Reddit user who says they are a conservative parent in Texas has complained that Republican attack ads against Democratic Senate nominee James Talarico taught their children what 'transgender' means.

The post, shared on the r/Conservative forum on Reddit, said every ad break now carries four to six political spots, most of them aimed at Talarico. The user argued that by talking constantly about issues conservatives oppose, the ads give those issues more attention than they would otherwise get.

The account is anecdotal, but it comes as former Texas House Speaker Dade Phelan questions whether his party's expensive campaign strategy is working.

'My Kids Didn't Know What Transgender Meant'

The post, titled 'Rant: My Kids Didn't Know What Transgender Meant Until the Anti-Talarico Ads', was published by the user u/zebtacular in a section of r/Conservative that is restricted to flaired users.

'I'm in Texas, and it seems like every commercial break has 4-6 political ads, most of them attacking James Talarico,' the user wrote. 'I understand the angle they're going for, but dang. My kids didn't even know what transgender meant until these ads started airing.'

'Now they're hearing about it constantly, and not because they went looking for it,' the post continued. The user said the ads 'seem to talk about these issues more than anyone else does', adding: 'It irritates me especially when I don't want to explain what they're talking about to my children.'

The parent made clear they still supported the aim of the campaign, describing it as an effort to 'keep these people away from influential positions within our government'. But they argued the strategy was backfiring.

'Constantly talking about the things we oppose is actually giving them more attention than they would otherwise receive,' the post said. 'We're practically talking the very things we don't want into existence.'

More Than $100 Million on 'Sex Change' Ads

The post comes amid heavy national spending. Republican candidates and outside groups spent more than $100 million (£74.7 million) on over 200 television, streaming and digital ads containing the phrase 'sex change' between 1 August and 12 October, according to a FactCheck.org analysis of AdImpact data cited by the Davis Vanguard.

More than $77 million (£57.5 million) of that went on Senate races. The figures cover ads nationwide using that specific phrase, not all advertising on transgender issues.

In Texas, ads from Texas PAC, which is affiliated with the Senate Leadership Fund, accused Talarico of supporting publicly funded gender-transition surgery for young children. The attacks rest on his opposition to a 2023 Texas law restricting gender-affirming treatment for minors. Voting against that law was not a vote to fund surgeries.

PolitiFact rated one such claim, that Talarico 'supported using taxpayer dollars for sex change surgeries on young children', False. As a state representative, Talarico voted against the 2023 bill, known as SB 14, and supported an unsuccessful amendment intended to limit the bill to a surgery ban, the fact-checker found.

'I oppose gender-reassignment surgeries for minors,' Talarico said on a podcast in June. His campaign called the Texas PAC ad a 'lie', according to PolitiFact.

The attacks have also taken stranger forms. In June, the pro-Trump PAC Citizens for Sanity released a 15-second AI-generated ad showing a deepfake Talarico dressed as Maria from The Sound of Music, singing a parody about transgender children, The Advocate reported. According to the outlet, the ad carried no disclaimer that the figure was AI-generated.

'It's Just Not Resonating'

The parent is not the only Republican questioning the approach. Phelan, who was speaker from 2021 to 2025, told Texas Monthly that in his view the ads are not working. 'We're still running transgender ads. It's just not resonating,' he said, Chron reported. '$100 million in ads, $125 million in ads, and nothing's moved the needle here in Texas in a month in the Senate race.'

Phelan said swing voters may simply be tired of the subject. 'They don't even know what you're talking about. This never happened in their communities, and they've been hearing about it for so many years,' he said. 'What Republicans are talking about is just not what the swing voter is really interested in.'

He added that Talarico and Democratic gubernatorial nominee Gina Hinojosa are gaining with Hispanic voters, suburban women and younger voters who swung towards Republicans in 2024. 'They were with us last cycle, and they're not with us this cycle,' Phelan said.

The American Principles Project, a conservative advocacy group that has encouraged anti-trans messaging, cautioned in a September memo that the issue alone would not be enough. 'Pressing the advantage on these issues alone, while important, may not be sufficient,' the memo said, as quoted by Chron. The group still backed continued attacks on the issue, but urged Republicans to also address the cost of living.

Polling on the issues points both ways, though the questions differ. A 2025 Pew survey found 56 per cent of Americans support banning transition-related medical care for minors, while a separate Fox News poll found voters trust Democrats more than Republicans on transgender issues by 13 points, PBS NewsHour reported.

The race itself is close. A Fox News poll of 881 likely voters, conducted from 24 to 28 September, put Talarico on 51 per cent and Republican nominee Ken Paxton, the state's attorney general, on 49 per cent, within the margin of error, FOX 7 Austin reported. Texas has not elected a Democrat to the Senate since 1988.

Texans will deliver their verdict on 3 November, with Republicans, by Phelan's account, still running the transgender ads.