Gun-control billionaire Michael Bloomberg is pouring millions of dollars into Texas elections, directing $2.5 million to a super PAC supporting Democrat James Talarico’s U.S. Senate campaign against Attorney General Ken Paxton while a separate Bloomberg-funded organization launches nearly $1 million in attack ads against Republican congressional candidate Brandon Herrera.
The spending is part of an approximately $80 million political operation Bloomberg has financed ahead of the November 3 midterm elections, including substantial contributions to organizations involved in gun-control advocacy and Democratic congressional campaigns.
According to October 20 reporting by The Washington Post, Bloomberg contributed $2.5 million to a super PAC supporting Talarico and another $16 million to House Majority PAC, the Democratic-aligned organization now financing attack advertisements against Herrera in Texas’s 23rd Congressional District.
For Texas gun owners, the financial connections are significant. Bloomberg has spent years financing efforts to expand firearm restrictions, and his latest investments are flowing into Texas races involving candidates with sharply different positions on the Second Amendment.
Bloomberg Puts $2.5 Million Behind Talarico
Bloomberg’s investment in the Texas Senate contest stands out for one important reason: it was reportedly the only Senate race he had financially entered during the current election cycle as of October 20.
Howard Wolfson, Bloomberg’s longtime political adviser, confirmed the $2.5 million contribution to a super PAC backing Talarico as part of the billionaire’s latest spending operation.
The money was directed to an independent political committee rather than Talarico’s campaign itself. The initial reporting did not identify the recipient committee.
But Bloomberg’s financial support comes as Talarico faces renewed scrutiny over his record of supporting sweeping federal gun restrictions.
In a 2020 video examined by The Reload, Talarico expressed support for banning so-called “assault weapons” and standard-capacity ammunition magazines. He also identified universal background checks, restrictions on large firearm purchases, and additional handgun design standards among policies he wanted to pursue.
Those positions go substantially further than the measures highlighted in his current campaign platform.
Talarico’s official campaign website calls for universal background checks, mandatory secure firearm storage around children, and raising the minimum purchase age for certain semiautomatic rifles.
And as Texas Gun Rights previously reported, Talarico has not abandoned the possibility of a federal ban on commonly owned semiautomatic firearms.
When asked whether a federal “assault weapons” ban remained on the table, Talarico answered:
“Absolutely.”
Bloomberg’s financial investment therefore enters a Senate contest in which one of the candidates has publicly supported firearm restrictions that closely align with longstanding priorities of Bloomberg’s national gun-control organization, Everytown for Gun Safety.
“Michael Bloomberg has spent years using his personal fortune to advance gun-control policies, and now he’s putting millions into a Texas Senate race featuring a candidate who has openly supported banning commonly owned firearms and standard-capacity magazines,” said Chris McNutt, President of Texas Gun Rights. “Texans deserve to know exactly who’s financing these political operations and how their money intersects with efforts to restrict our Second Amendment rights.”
Bloomberg-Funded PAC Launches Nearly $1 Million Attack Against Brandon Herrera
Bloomberg’s financial involvement in Texas extends beyond the Senate race.
House Majority PAC, which received $16 million from Bloomberg as part of his latest spending operation, is also running a major advertising offensive against Brandon Herrera in Texas’s 23rd Congressional District.
In an October 22 fundraising email, Herrera’s campaign alerted supporters to approximately $900,000 in new spending by a Democratic super PAC targeting his congressional campaign.
The email included a screenshot of federal independent-expenditure information identifying House Majority PAC, listed under Federal Election Commission committee number C00495028, as the spending organization.
The screenshot showed $838,015.20 in spending associated with an October 20 advertisement and $901,438.84 in reported year-to-date expenditures opposing Herrera.
The committee’s identity can be verified through the Federal Election Commission’s official records.
House Majority PAC also publicly confirmed its advertising offensive in an October 20 announcement, identifying two advertisements against Herrera titled “Laughing Matter” and “Sin Respeto.”
The English- and Spanish-language advertisements attack Herrera over his participation in a video involving references to school shootings following the 2022 Uvalde massacre.
The financial relationship is documented: Bloomberg contributed $16 million to House Majority PAC, and the organization is spending against Herrera.
The available records do not establish that Bloomberg personally directed the advertisements or that his specific contribution paid for them. But they do establish that one of Bloomberg’s major political beneficiaries is financing attacks against Herrera.
That connection is particularly noteworthy given Herrera’s outspoken defense of the Second Amendment and Bloomberg’s longstanding financial support for gun-control campaigns.
Bloomberg’s $80 Million Operation Includes $24 Million for Everytown
The spending against Paxton and Herrera represents only a portion of Bloomberg’s much larger national political operation.
According to reporting by The New York Times, published October 20, Bloomberg has committed approximately $80 million during September and October to Democratic candidates and political organizations.
Among the reported contributions are $24 million to Everytown for Gun Safety, the national gun-control organization Bloomberg helped establish, and $16 million to House Majority PAC.
Additional contributions include $2.5 million to the super PAC supporting Talarico, $8 million for Democratic gubernatorial contests, and millions more to other Democratic-aligned political organizations.
Bloomberg’s adviser also disclosed plans for another $10 million in House-race spending.
The relationship between Everytown and House Majority PAC is especially relevant.
The two organizations have collaborated on a roughly $10 million advertising initiative supporting eight Democratic congressional candidates with backgrounds in gun-control advocacy.
According to the New York Times, Bloomberg’s funding for Everytown effectively freed additional House Majority PAC resources for spending elsewhere.
That does not establish that Everytown financed the advertisements against Herrera. It does demonstrate how Bloomberg’s political investments can strengthen multiple organizations operating within the same broader political effort.
For Texas Gun Rights, the central issue is not simply how much Bloomberg is spending. It is the gun-control agenda he has consistently financed and the political organizations now benefiting from his contributions.
Bloomberg has made no secret of his desire to see additional federal firearm restrictions enacted. Through Everytown and his other political investments, he has devoted substantial financial resources to advancing those objectives.
His latest spending places millions of dollars behind organizations participating directly in Texas elections, including a super PAC supporting Talarico and another attacking Herrera.
The financial connections are documented. Talarico’s support for additional gun restrictions is documented. And Bloomberg’s longstanding involvement in national gun-control advocacy is well established.
Chip in to Texas Gun Rights today to help expose the billionaire-funded gun-control machine and defend the Second Amendment against the restrictions it is working to advance.
