Hostin predicts Texas will 'go blue'; Fox poll shows Talarico narrowly ahead of Paxton
On "The View", Sunny Hostin predicted Democrat James Talarico would beat Republican Ken Paxton in Texas's November Senate race. Fox News's own poll has Talarico ahead by 2 points, within the margin of error.
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The story, neutrally told
Right · 2On Thursday 8 October 2026, "The View" co-host Sunny Hostin predicted that Texas would flip blue in November for the first time in about 30 years, as the panel discussed the U.S. Senate race between Democrat James Talarico and Republican Ken Paxton. Fox NewsR “"The View" co-host Sunny Hostin predicted Thursday that voters will flip Texas blue in November for the first time in about 30 years” Read at Fox News ↗ New York PostR “as the panel discussed the tight race between Democratic candidate James Talarico and Republican Ken Paxton for the US Senate” Read at New York Post ↗ Right · 2Hostin said that in September eight pollsters had Talarico ahead 51-45%, and that the same poll had him leading Paxton among women (56%-40%), voters aged 18 to 29 (66%-22%) and Hispanics (62%-30%). She added: "He's going to win this race." Fox NewsR “In September, not only one, but eight pollsters had Talarico ahead 51-45%.” Read at Fox News ↗ New York PostR “He’s going to win this race.”” Read at New York Post ↗ Right · 2Co-host Alyssa Farah Griffin said Texas being in play reflected frustration with the current leadership and was "a mess of the president's own making". She still said the race "could go either direction", called Talarico a good candidate, and argued Sen. John Cornyn would have been a better Republican nominee than Paxton, who was endorsed by President Donald Trump and won the GOP primary. Fox NewsR “I still think it could go either direction for Paxton or Talarico, but this is kind of a perfect storm” Read at Fox News ↗ New York PostR “She argued that Sen. John Cornyn would’ve been a better Republican candidate over Paxton, who was endorsed by Trump and came out on top in the GOP primary.” Read at New York Post ↗
Right · 2Co-hosts Whoopi Goldberg and Ana Navarro cast some doubt on the polling. Navarro said 2016 "left me scared" and that hope must be turned into votes, warning against complacency. Fox NewsR “Co-hosts Whoopi Goldberg and Ana Navarro cast some doubt on the positive polling for the Democratic candidate.” Read at Fox News ↗ New York PostR “hope alone won’t win an election. People got to turn hope into vote.” Read at New York Post ↗ Right · 2The outlets cite a Fox News poll released in October of likely Texas voters. It found Talarico with a net favourable rating of 8 points (52% to 44%) and Paxton 18 points underwater (40% to 58%). The matchup was 51-49% for Talarico, a 2-point edge that is within the margin of sampling error. Fox NewsR “All this gives Talarico a slim 2-point edge over Paxton (51-49%) in the poll among likely voters. These matchup results are within the margin of sampling error.” Read at Fox News ↗ New York PostR “compared to Paxton, who is underwater by 18 points (40% vs. 58%).” Read at New York Post ↗ Right · 2The same poll found likely voters split on Senate control, 49% preferring Democrats and 50% Republicans. Republicans were six times more likely to view Paxton unfavourably (32%) than Democrats were to view Talarico unfavourably (5%). Fox NewsR “Likely Texas voters are split on control of the Senate: 49% prefer a Democratic Senate while 50% favor a Republican upper chamber.” Read at Fox News ↗ New York PostR “Republicans are six times more likely to view Paxton unfavorably (32%) than Democrats do Talarico (5%).” Read at New York Post ↗
Right · 2Trump campaigned with Paxton in San Antonio on Wednesday, and both pointed to Talarico's absence from the event. Talarico's campaign said he had the flu and was expected back on the trail this weekend. Paxton's campaign did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment. Fox NewsR “The Senate candidate's campaign responded to the criticism, explaining Talarico has been sick with the flu and is expected to return to the campaign trail this weekend.” Read at Fox News ↗ New York PostR “Paxton’s campaign did not immediately return Fox News Digital’s request for comment.” Read at New York Post ↗ Right · 1RNC spokesman Zach Kraft told Fox News Digital that anyone taking Hostin and Griffin seriously about politics "likely has a low enough IQ to qualify as a guest host on 'The View'". New York PostR “RNC spokesman Zach Kraft told Fox News Digital in a statement about the co-hosts’ remarks.” Read at New York Post ↗
Every sentence links to the reporting it rests on. The pill in front of each says where its sources sit: Left, Centre or Right when one side supplies at least half of them, Mixed when they are evenly split. The number is how many outlets it cites.
Left0 outlets
No left outlet in our sources has covered this story yet.
Centre0 outlets
No centre outlet in our sources has covered this story yet.
Right2 outlets
- Framing
- Both outlets run the same Fox News Digital report, which presents Hostin's prediction as a media story. They set it against the Fox poll's narrow margin and the doubts raised by other hosts, and end with a sharp RNC rebuke.
- Emphasis
- The slim 2-point Fox poll margin within the error margin, Navarro's caution, Talarico's absence from the trail due to flu, and the RNC's criticism of the hosts.
- Leaves out or plays down
- Neither verifies Hostin's 'eight pollsters' 51-45% figure, and no Paxton campaign response is included. No left or centre outlets covered the story.
- Charged language
- “low enough IQ to qualify as a guest host”“a mess of the president's own making”
- For example
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“These matchup results are within the margin of sampling error.” — Fox News
“Co-hosts Whoopi Goldberg and Ana Navarro cast some doubt on the positive polling for the Democratic candidate.” — New York Post
What every side reports
- Hostin predicted on Thursday that Texas would go blue in November.
- A Fox News poll shows Talarico ahead 51-49% among likely voters, within the margin of error.
- Navarro and Goldberg expressed doubt about relying on the polls.
- Paxton's campaign had not responded to a request for comment.
Where accounts differ
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How strong Talarico's polling lead is
- Right
- Both outlets report Hostin's claim of a 51-45% lead across eight pollsters, alongside the Fox News poll's 51-49% result, which they describe as within the margin of sampling error. Neither independently verifies Hostin's figures.
James Talarico person
Talarico is presented as the poll leader, though narrowly in the Fox poll. His campaign said he missed the Trump–Paxton San Antonio event because of the flu and he would return to campaigning this weekend.
“Talarico has been sick with the flu and is expected to return to the campaign trail this weekend.” — Fox News
Ken Paxton person
Paxton is presented as the Trump-endorsed GOP primary winner with poor favourability in the Fox poll. He and Trump pointed to Talarico's absence at a San Antonio event. His campaign did not respond to a request for comment.
“Paxton’s campaign did not immediately return Fox News Digital’s request for comment.” — New York Post
“They both pointed to Talarico’s absence from campaigning at the event.” — New York Post
Left0 articles
No coverage yet.
Centre0 articles
No coverage yet.
Right2 articles
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'The View' co-host predicts Texas will 'go blue' as polls show Talarico leading Paxton
Mixed Fox News frames Hostin's confident prediction against its own poll's slim margin and co-hosts' caution, and closes with an RNC insult.
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‘The View’ co-host Sunny Hostin predicts Texas will ‘go blue’ as polls show Talarico leading Paxton
Mixed The New York Post carries the Fox News Digital report almost verbatim, with the same contrast between Hostin's confidence and the narrow poll, and the same RNC quote.
- 8 Oct 20:57 First Fox NewsR 'The View' co-host predicts Texas will 'go blue' as polls show Talarico leading Paxton
- 9 Oct 08:29 +11h 32m New York PostR ‘The View’ co-host Sunny Hostin predicts Texas will ‘go blue’ as polls show Talarico leading Paxton
Times are when each article was published, or when we first saw it if the outlet gave no time.