Senator-elect James Talarico made a surprise appearance in Saturday Night Live’s cold open on Saturday, days after beating Republican Ken Paxton to flip a Texas Senate seat.
The sketch opened with Sarah Sherman as Chuck Schumer and Kenan Thompson as Hakeem Jeffries celebrating the Democrats’ midterm wins. James Austin Johnson’s President Trump then took over, working through the newly elected Democrats until he reached Texas and “Talafreako.”
Talarico walked out to cheers and corrected him: “That’s Senator ‘Talafreako.’” He introduced himself as “the guy who’s been texting you every day asking for $5,” a nod to the small-dollar fundraising texts that powered his campaign.
He then turned the joke on the show itself, saying voters want something new and different. “I’m talking, of course, about SNL’s cold opens. How many of these Trump freezers are they going to do?” He closed the sketch by delivering the show’s signature line: “Live from New York, it’s Saturday night!”
Talarico beat Paxton by about 12 points, winning just over 55% of the vote, according to the New York Post. The win gave Democrats a Texas Senate seat for the first time since 1988.
The cameo also closed a loop from his campaign. In September, an interview with Talarico on Jimmy Kimmel Live moved to YouTube only after ABC pulled it from broadcast, a decision linked to pressure from FCC chair Brendan Carr. Talarico and Kimmel both criticised the move at the time.
Druski hosted the episode, the fifth of season 52, with The Strokes as musical guest.
Source: USA Today
