Texas state representative James Talarico drew attention in Brazil because his surname resembles slang for a man who pursues a friend’s partner. (Foto: Instagram)
James Talarico, a Texas state representative who has been elected to the U.S. Senate, has drawn attention in Brazil because his surname resembles “talarico,” a Brazilian slang term for a man who gets involved with a friend’s partner. The attention recalls a joke Talarico made in a post on X in 2020.
At the time, Talarico responded to Brazilians calling him a “woman-stealer.” He wrote that he was going viral in Brazil and had learned that “talarico” was slang for a “wife-stealer.” Greeting Brazil, he added that he was working on good public policy in Texas and promised, “I won’t steal your girl.”
The slang is also associated with the samba song “Talarico, Woman-Stealer” by Zeca Pagodinho. The song tells the story of a man named Talarico who steals another man’s wife.
The Associated Press projected that Talarico would become the first Democrat elected to the U.S. Senate from Texas since 1988. Texas has traditionally been a Republican stronghold. Before the campaign began, Talarico was little known across the state and was regarded as an underdog within his own party.
Talarico faced Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a Donald Trump ally who has been involved in several corruption scandals, according to the report. Talarico remains a state representative as he prepares to take his Senate seat.
Midterm elections are viewed as an important measure of the political climate for the White House. Voters choose all 435 members of the House of Representatives and 35 of the Senate’s 100 seats. At the time of the report, Republicans controlled both chambers of Congress.
