Texas Senator-elect James Talarico wants Democrats to abolish the Senate filibuster when they take control of the chamber, calling it a “Jim Crow relic” that prevents elected majorities from governing.
Talarico, who defeated Republican Ken Paxton on Tuesday, endorsed abolishing the filibuster in an interview with NBC News correspondent Ryan Chandler.
“Yes. I believe that the majority has the right to govern in this country,” Talarico said. “And the filibuster, which is not in the Constitution — it’s a Jim Crow relic. It is leading to gridlock in our nation’s capital.”
He argued that eliminating the procedure would allow Congress to address the cost of groceries, gasoline, utilities, and health care, adding that either party should be able to govern when it wins a Senate majority.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), however, declined to say whether Democrats would eliminate the filibuster after their election victory.
“Look, we are focused — the first thing we’re going to do is reduce people’s costs and work the legislative process,” Schumer said when asked whether Democrats planned to “nuke the filibuster.”
Democrats won control of the Senate but fell short of the 60 votes generally required to overcome a filibuster on most legislation. Eliminating the legislative filibuster would allow a simple majority to advance most bills without having to meet that threshold. Budget reconciliation and certain other measures are already exempt.
President Donald Trump repeatedly urged his own party to abolish the filibuster when Republicans controlled the Senate, but GOP leaders resisted.
In December 2025, Trump told Politico that the filibuster was hurting Republicans and called on GOP senators to eliminate it “without question.” He argued that removing the rule would allow Republicans to advance their agenda, including legislation on health care and election administration, without needing Democratic votes.
Trump had already made the demand during the 2025 government shutdown, urging Republicans to terminate the filibuster so they could reopen the government and advance legislation without Democratic cooperation. Senate Republicans rejected the proposal, with Majority Leader John Thune saying he knew where the votes stood and that eliminating the rule was “not happening.”
Republican Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI) warned at the time that Democrats would eliminate the filibuster as soon as they regained control of the Senate, arguing Republicans should act first. Other Republicans, including Sens. Thom Tillis (R-NC) and James Lankford (R-OK), defended the procedure as essential to preserving bipartisan cooperation.
Trump renewed his demand in July 2026, urging Republicans to terminate the filibuster so they could pass the SAVE America Act, legislation he backed requiring additional proof of citizenship for voter registration. Thune again resisted, saying Republicans did not have the votes to eliminate the rule.
Now that Democrats have taken the Senate, Trump’s warnings about what Democrats might do are becoming a central question for the incoming majority. Talarico’s comments provide an unusually clear indication of where at least one prominent Democratic candidate stands, even as Schumer has declined to commit publicly.
Eliminating the filibuster would not guarantee passage of every Democratic proposal: the party would still need to hold together its entire Senate majority and secure support in the House and from the president. But it would remove one of the most significant procedural obstacles to passing legislation along party lines.
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