Overview
- Talarico posted a new campaign ad on Friday, Aug. 14, 2026, that features attorney Joe Joplin and security-camera clips the campaign says show Ken Paxton pocketing a Montblanc pen at the Collin County Courthouse.
- The campaign says Paxton returned the pen after police became involved and uses Joplin’s on-camera endorsement to make a character argument against Paxton.
- Key materials in the ad — the security footage and Joplin’s account — were provided by the Talarico campaign and have limited independent verification in reporting.
- The ad places the pen episode at the same Collin County courthouse tied to Paxton’s past securities indictment, a case that was later dropped after Paxton agreed to community service, legal ethics classes, and restitution.
- The race is closely watched nationwide with narrow polling and major endorsements from President Trump for Paxton and Barack Obama for Talarico, and the new ad could sharpen national attention and voter messaging in the tight contest.