Texas state Rep. James Talarico, the Democratic Senate nominee, has been absent from the campaign trail for 12 days as the race enters its final stretch, and Republicans have seized on it as a new line of attack. At a San Antonio rally with President Trump on Wednesday, attorney general and GOP nominee Ken Paxton led the crowd in a chant of "Where is James Talarico?" and his campaign has amplified the theme on social media, with Trump calling Talarico "MISSING IN ACTION" on Truth Social.

The two candidates are locked in a tight battle for the seat held by GOP Sen. John Cornyn, whom Paxton defeated in a bruising primary in May. CNN reports a recent New York Times/Siena University poll put Talarico six points ahead of Paxton, and worried Republicans — who fear Paxton could become the first GOP Senate loser in Texas in nearly four decades, per the AP — are flooding the airwaves: CNN reports more than $190 million in GOP ad spending from September to November against $52 million from Democrats.

Time reports Trump warned the San Antonio crowd, "We'll never forgive you for what you have done if you let that happen," in his third Texas trip in less than a month, centering his remarks on Talarico with personal attacks and nicknames. According to Time, the rally came as Republicans grow anxious about Trump's drag on the ticket — the AP-cited Reuters-Ipsos poll gives Democrats a seven-point lead on which party should control Congress, per Time.

Talarico is set to appear at a town hall hosted by CNN and Jubilee Media on Wednesday, October 14 in Fort Worth, and the outlets have extended the same invitation to Paxton, CNN reports. Time reports Trump also promised a debate between the two. Paxton's campaign said in July that he would debate but later objected to proposed moderators, and the window is narrowing with Election Day less than four weeks away — leaving the two candidates still yet to appear jointly before voters.