Breaking: Talarico PAC Operative Admits to Paying for Votes in ‘a Roundabout Way’ in Hidden Camera Footage
A Texas Democratic operative was caught on video discussing a scheme too influence voters. Sky McAdams, from Texas Majority PAC, explained that they are paying people $25 to attend a one-hour Zoom class on voting importance and criticizing Republicans. This effort aims to indirectly encourage attendees to influence their friends and family to vote for Democratic candidates. The PAC has spent significant amounts on this “relational organizing program,” which has been marketed in several states and is believed to have contributed tens of thousands of votes. Republican officials have condemned the scheme, calling it an attempt to buy votes, prompting calls for an investigation by the Department of Justice.Experts noted that paying for attendance differs from directly paying for votes, but some believe this approach may violate election laws and constitute conspiracy.
A Texas Democratic operative said the quiet part out loud — on video.
Sky McAdams, organizing manager for Texas Majority PAC, described a $25 stipend as a workaround the group is using to boost support for Democrats like U.S. Senate candidate James Talarico, among others.
“We are paying people $25 to attend a one-hour Zoom class to learn why voting is important and why the Republicans are causing all of these bad things,” McAdams said in undercover video obtained by Townhall.
“So it’s like a roundabout way of paying people for their votes, essentially.”
Townhall posted the clip Wednesday morning.
EXCLUSIVE: TALARICO SUPER PAC CAUGHT PAYING VOTERS!
“We are paying people $25…a roundabout way of paying people for their votes.”
Video obtained by Townhall catches Sky McAdams, organizing manager for Texas Majority PAC, on undercover video explaining the scheme to elect… pic.twitter.com/FKK5nEfb5B
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) September 16, 2026
McAdams said the effort is a “paid relational program” run by Relentless using software called Rally.
Townhall explained the theory: Someone is paid to sit through a class, with the hope that the person then leans on friends and family to vote for the desired candidate.
“You can’t pay someone to vote for someone,” McAdams acknowledged on the video. “You can’t be like, ‘Here’s $25, go vote for me.”
However, he added, it’s fine to pay someone $25 to attend a one-hour class.
McAdams called the approach “a little gray.”
“If I was a Republican, I would be pissed,” he said.
Texas Majority PAC reported paying Relentless $500,000 in a July campaign-finance filing for a “relational organizing program.”
That accounted for about 20 percent of the PAC’s spending to that point, Townhall reported.
At $25 apiece, that could add up to 20,000 voter encounters.
Relentless has marketed similar 2024 programs in Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, North Carolina and Pennsylvania and claimed tens of thousands of Democratic votes from the model, Townhall reported.
Texas Majority PAC is part of the Texas Together coalition supporting Talarico against Republican Ken Paxton for U.S. Senate.
Paxton responded quickly. “Absolutely outrageous!” he wrote in a post on social media platform X. “James Talarico’s team just admitted they are trying to bribe people for votes. Texans aren’t for sale, no matter how much James Talarico thinks they are.”
Absolutely outrageous!
James Talarico’s team just admitted they are trying to bribe people for votes.
Texans aren’t for sale, no matter how much James Talarico thinks they are. https://t.co/WI8t8jG35o
— Attorney General Ken Paxton (@KenPaxtonTX) September 16, 2026
Election lawyers watching the posts noted the gap McAdams himself named. Paying for attendance is not exactly the same thing as paying for a marked ballot.
Some immediately called for a Department of Justice investigation.
“This is no different than the use of straw donors in making contributions,” one former DOJ prosecutor said.
“The intent to violate the statute is there. … I think this guy and his group have a bigger problem than he imagines. Creating ‘evading’ of federal law is just another word for ‘conspiracy.’”
The intent to violate the statute is there. THis is no different than the use of straw donors in making contributions.
I think this guy and his group have a bigger problem than he imagines. Creating “evading” of federal law is just another word for “conspiracy.”
This might… https://t.co/YDApahhVN4
— Shipwreckedcrew (@shipwreckedcrew) September 16, 2026
“This guy and his group have a bigger problem than he imagines,” he concluded.
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