WHAM! Black lawmakers and strategists dump on Crockett over failed campaign

March 5, 2026

From Politico: Black Democratic strategists, lawmakers and activists are frustrated that Texas Democrats rejected Jasmine Crockett as their Senate nominee Tuesday night — but they also saw it coming.

Following Crockett’s single-digit loss, they recounted a laundry list of why she fell to state Rep. James Talarico: Her campaign was unfocused; she had an insufficient campaign infrastructure to challenge Talarico, even though she earned the backing of former Vice President Kamala Harris. They also said her media strategy relied too heavily on social media rather than television ad buys — typically seen as critical in a sprawling state like Texas and its nearly two dozen media markets.

“People who don’t understand politics will be upset because Jasmine was their hero,” said Texas state Rep. Jolanda Jones, a Democrat. “But for people who understand politics, [Crockett] literally had no ground game.”

She added: “This L is on her.”

Houston-based political strategist and social media influencer Tayhlor Coleman complained, “A lot of Black women who work in the Democratic Party, vote for Democrats, organize for Democrats, have always had a sense of this. It is a lot more apparent now: A lot of people in the Democratic Party want our labor, they do not want our leadership.”

Politico quoted a Black national Democratic operative who spoke on condition of anonymity as saying of Crockett, “She ran a fucking terrible campaign that many will question if she’s running a campaign at all.”

Stefanie Brown James, co-founder of the Collective PAC, which works to elect Black candidates, said of Crockett, “Even though she has substance, not everybody likes her style. And I think that sometimes her style is one that is not appealing, especially to the old guard Democrats, whose fighting style is antiquated and outdated.”

Meanwhile, Crockett’s former deputy campaign manager Karrol Rimal played the “voter fraud” card.

““Despite being outspent, she held our own and excited an untapped base of support for Democrats with record numbers of first time primary voters. There was also the intentional voter suppression of voters in Dallas and Williamson counties. That can not be ignored,” Rimal claimed.

Black Dem strategists and lawmakers are frustrated that Crockett lost her primary — but not exactly surprised.

“For people who understand politics, [Crockett] literally had no ground game,” said TX state Rep. Jolanda Jones.

She added: “This L is on her.” https://t.co/WBniwGXxx2

— POLITICO (@politico) March 5, 2026