President Donald Trump on Tuesday threw his support behind Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in the Republican Senate primary runoff, issuing a social media endorsement that praised Paxton as a “true MAGA Warrior” and giving his campaign a late boost against incumbent Sen. John Cornyn.
“Ken is a true MAGA Warrior who has ALWAYS delivered for Texas, and will continue to do so in the United States Senate,” Trump wrote on social media.
The endorsement was announced during a Paxton campaign event in Allen, Texas, where supporters erupted in cheers upon hearing the news. Some began dancing to “YMCA,” a Trump campaign anthem, according to the Associated Press.
“I have so much respect for the president and appreciate so much his endorsement,” Paxton said.
The runoff election, scheduled for next week, is the culmination of a contentious intraparty contest that has divided Texas Republicans. Cornyn, a three-term senator and former Senate Republican whip, has sought to distance himself from Trump’s most aggressive critics while maintaining ties to the party’s establishment wing. Paxton, who has served as Texas attorney general since 2015 and faced his own legal troubles, has positioned himself as a staunch ally of the former president.
Trump had remained publicly noncommittal in the race for months before this endorsement. The move aligns him squarely behind Paxton, who has echoed Trump’s claims of a stolen 2020 election and has been a frequent combatant in legal battles against the Biden administration.
The race is seen as a test of Trump’s continued influence within the Republican Party ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.