Who is James Talarico’s Girlfriend?

Texas Senate candidate James Talarico spent the final stretch of his primary campaign receiving a flurry of questions regarding his relationship status. Though he remained quiet about it for the majority of his campaign, Talarico has finally made his four year long relationship with his girlfriend public.

Talarico addressed the rumors directly during a May appearance on "The Jamie Kern Lima Show" podcast, confirming he was in a relationship and calling his girlfriend "my rock" and "my best friend.” He added that he didn't know if he could have made it through "the last six months of this crazy race" without her by his side, the outlet reported. His campaign told the Current that he met her while she was serving as chief of staff in his Texas House office, and that the two have been together for roughly four years, beginning after she left his staff.

Talarico's campaign initially declined to name his girlfriend, but that changed in late May when the New York Post identified her as Brianna Menard, a 30-year-old who now works as a lobbyist for the Texas Medical Association. The Post's profile noted Menard describes herself as a committed vegan, prompting Talarico spokesman JT Ennis to tell the paper that "James is not and never has been a vegan, much to his girlfriend's chagrin," adding, "true love conquers all.”

According to that same reporting, the couple met when Menard joined Talarico's office in 2022, and the relationship didn't turn romantic until January 2023, around the time she left his staff to become chief of staff for state Rep. Salman Bhojani. The two share a taste for live music, attending Austin City Limits annually, and are regulars at Big Bend National Park, in addition to rooting for the Texas Longhorns and San Antonio Spurs.

The reaction

Talarico, for his part, has largely stayed above the fray. On the same podcast where he confirmed the relationship, he reflected on wanting to become a father one day, telling host Jamie Kern Lima that watching his sister and brother-in-law raise his niece had "confirmed" that fatherhood was something he wanted for himself.