To go from Level 1 to 2, you need 100 Talent Points; for 2 to 3, you need 200. In total, you need 300, but early on, TP quantities hardly scratch above 3-5 without chaining battles. As you progress through the story, the TP amounts will greatly increase, so don't worry too heavily about this early on; wait until after you've dealt with the President before really focusing on this, as you should be able to claim all citizens by this point if not sooner.
Having the Electrician can help, too. If you idle for a decent amount of time, then seek out an enemy to fight, you can then increase the TP yield. Perhaps you can do this in respect to facing off against a Wanted enemy, which are visible on screen and give you TP like a boss would.