Posts falsely claim Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico was at a
mental facility
[October 13, 2026]
By MELISSA GOLDIN and JESSE BEDAYN
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Republican officials and conservative social media
users spread unfounded rumors in recent days that state Rep. James
Talarico, the Democratic nominee in a competitive Texas Senate race, had
suffered a mental health crisis.
Questions about Talarico’s whereabouts began spreading after the
candidate was not seen in public for nine days. But he and his campaign
have repeatedly attributed his absence to the flu.
Here's a closer look at the facts.
CLAIM: Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico was being treated in
an Ohio mental health facility last week.
THE FACTS: This is false. The facility where he was said to have been
treated has denied he was ever a patient there. Both he and his campaign
have said he was recovering from the flu. Talarico has type 1 diabetes,
which means he has a higher risk of developing complications from the
flu. Regardless, Talarico's schedule doesn't align with what was
presented as evidence of his stay at the mental health facility and
images reviewed by The Associated Press showed Talarico at home over
several days last week.
Talarico spoke at a Hispanic Business Council event on Sept. 30 by
video. He said during the event that he had been diagnosed with the flu
at an urgent care facility in Dallas after “starting to feel kind of
under the weather a few days ago,” adding that he wasn't there in person
because he had decided to “put safety first” since he had a fever and
was still contagious.
Republicans highlighted Talarico's subsequent absence from the campaign
trail from Oct. 1 to Oct. 9, noting his absence came at a critical time
at the end of a competitive race. His opponent, Texas Attorney General
Ken Paxton, described Talarico as “missing” in a series of social posts
and said his campaign had requested “proof of life.” President Donald
Trump called Talarico “MISSING IN ACTION!" in a Truth Social post and
asked: “Where is he? What is wrong with him?”
Among the chatter was a rumor that Talarico had suffered a mental health
breakdown. Conservative social media influencer Nick Sorter on Sunday
posted a 47-second audio clip on X that he said proved that Talarico had
been discharged earlier in the week from Lindner Center of Hope, a
mental health treatment center in Mason, Ohio. In the clip, a woman who
Sorter claimed was an employee there says it looked like Talarico “was
just discharged this evening.”
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Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Texas state Rep. James
Talarico speaks during a television interview at a food drive at the
Frederick Douglass Human Services and Justice Center, Sept. 9, 2026,
in Dallas. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, File)
But the timeline doesn’t hold up. Rhein Amacher, who describes
himself on social media as a “right-wing provocateur,” said he made
the call on Saturday evening. Talarico was seen at the Austin City
Limits music festival on Friday. On Saturday, he made an appearance
at a Kacey Musgraves concert in Dallas.
The Lindner Center of Hope wrote in an X post on Sunday that
Talarico “has never received treatment” from the facility. Talarico
replied to the post, saying, “I've never even been to Ohio.” He
included a tears of joy emoji. JT Ennis, a spokesperson for Talarico,
called Sorter’s claim “a lie designed to promote a pathetic
conspiracy theory” in an X post and wrote that Talarico had been
recovering from the flu at his home in Austin.”
“I got the flu, and I'm feeling much better, and I'm glad I had a
chance to recover,” Talarico said in a Sunday interview with the NBC
affiliate in Dallas-Fort Worth. He confirmed that the online rumors
were “not true.” In an MS NOW interview the same day, he called such
rumors “the craziest thing I've ever heard.”
If Talarico wins the November general election, Paxton would be the
first Republican in nearly four decades to lose a Senate race in
Texas.
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