Ken Paxton, the Donald Trump-backed Texas attorney general, has defeated incumbent John Cornyn in the Republican primary runoff for the Senate. The victory signals that even a scandal-plagued candidate can win in the deep red state with Trump's support.
"After a public service career lasting more than four decades and 18 consecutive campaign wins, tonight we've come up short in this primary runoff," Cornyn said after the race was called. "I've always supported the GOP ticket. I intend to do so again this general election."
Paxton will now face James Talarico, a Democratic pastor and state legislator, in November's midterm elections. Talarico's message of peace and populism has attracted attention, and if he wins, he would become the first Democrat in more than 30 years to win statewide office in Texas.
First elected attorney general in 2014, Paxton has positioned himself as a far-right leader, launching investigations into abortion bans and gender-affirming care, and leading a lawsuit to overturn Trump's 2020 loss. However, he carries significant political baggage, including a 2023 impeachment for corruption (later acquitted), a dismissed felony securities fraud indictment, and a divorce filed by his wife on "biblical grounds" citing adultery.
Brandon Rottinghaus, a political science professor at the University of Houston, said: "Paxton was Donald Trump before Donald Trump was. He was in the vanguard of the Tea Party movement, which was a major spur for the Maga movement nationally."
