The endorsement sets up a high-stakes runoff
President Donald Trump endorsed Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in the Republican primary runoff for the U.S. Senate, setting up a more direct challenge to incumbent Sen. John Cornyn in next week’s May 26 contest. The endorsement broke during a Paxton campaign event in Allen, Texas, where supporters reacted to the announcement while voting already moved into the early voting period that runs through Friday.
Trump described Paxton as aligned with his political movement, writing on social media that Paxton “is a true MAGA Warrior” and praising him as someone who “has ALWAYS delivered for Texas,” adding that he would do so “in the United States Senate.” The endorsement, AP reported, came as Paxton and Cornyn had advanced to the runoff after finishing as the top vote-getters in a March 3 primary in which no candidate won a majority.
Paxton responded to Trump’s endorsement by saying he had “so much respect for the president and appreciate so much his endorsement,” AP reported. Trump’s endorsement also placed Paxton further into the spotlight as the GOP nomination fight narrowed to the matchup the party will use in the November general election.
Early voting is underway while the race sharpens
AP reported that early voting began Monday and continued through Friday, with the runoff set for May 26. The contest will decide the Republican nominee to face Democratic state Rep. James Talarico in November, according to AP.
Cornyn, speaking at a campaign event in Lubbock later Tuesday, said Trump’s endorsement “will certainly have an impact on the race” but added that “we’re not giving up the fight.” Cornyn also leaned into an argument he has repeated on the campaign trail, telling voters that “it’s the people of Texas,” and that “there’s no substitute for that.”
The endorsement intensified a contest that had already been described as bitter and resource-heavy within the Texas Republican electorate, AP said, with attention focused on whether GOP primary voters would choose the more Trump-aligned option in Paxton over the party’s incumbent-statewide officeholder.
The fight centers on loyalty as much as policy
AP reported that Trump’s endorsement was part of a broader pattern of decisions in Republican primary fights aimed at challenging or “culling” politicians Trump deemed insufficiently loyal. The AP story said Trump’s recent endorsements included efforts that helped defeat Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy in Louisiana and Indiana state senators who opposed him on redistricting.
Within Texas, GOP establishment figures have worried that Cornyn remained the better candidate for the general election, AP reported, even as Trump backed Paxton. Cornyn said he had not spoken with Trump about the endorsement.
Trump, in his social media post, characterized Cornyn as a “good man” but said Cornyn was “very late” in backing him during what Trump described as a “Historic Run for the Republican Nomination.” The AP account also reported that Trump’s messaging sought to portray the runoff as a test of alignment with the political movement Trump has built inside the GOP.
Money and messaging loom in the runoff
AP reported that Cornyn’s campaign organizations and allied super PACs have outspent Paxton on advertising since last year, with the majority of that spending going to attacks on Paxton. AP said Cornyn’s campaign and groups supporting it would have spent more than $87 million on advertising, according to ad-tracking firm AdImpact, including more than $18.5 million since the March 3 primary.
In contrast, AP reported that Paxton’s campaign groups and a single super PAC spent a fraction of that amount, for a total of $9.2 million on advertising, including about $4.9 million since the March 3 primary. The spending comparison underscored the stakes of Trump’s endorsement, which AP said has come as the runoff has diverted resources from other competitive races across the country.
Republicans weigh general-election risk
AP reported concerns in Washington among Senate Republicans following Trump’s decision. The story said GOP leaders at a luncheon expressed concern that Republicans could need to spend millions more in the general election if Paxton becomes the nominee.
Republican Sen. Cynthia Lummis told AP she was “sad,” and said she believed Cornyn had a better chance of winning the general election. Lummis also said, “Now it’ll just cost us a fortune.”
The AP story also described how Paxton’s endorsement energized some voters at the campaign event, while other voters in the Cornyn camp viewed the development as a setback. Caroline Zadeh said the endorsement was “an awesome thing” and that she trusts “Trump to do the right thing,” while Bennie Newman told AP that although he voted for Cornyn, the endorsement came as “a surprise” and “a disappointment,” citing concerns about Paxton’s ability to compete against Talarico.
A broader intra-party conflict has followed Trump to Senate contests
AP reported that Cornyn and Trump have clashed before. The story said Cornyn suggested in 2023 that Trump could not win the presidency again in 2024 and that his “time has passed him by.” It also said Cornyn criticized Trump’s border wall plan before later supporting it.
AP further reported that Cornyn has had support from Senate Republican leadership, including South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott, chair of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, who warned it was a “strong possibility” Republicans could not hold Texas if Cornyn was not the nominee.
The AP account also cited how Trump’s influence has spread beyond Texas through endorsements that helped alter other GOP nomination fights, including Indiana’s redistricting-related contests and a Louisiana race in which a Trump-endorsed candidate advanced to a June 27 runoff.
Trump’s endorsement of Paxton now turns the Texas Republican nomination into a contest closely watched across the party as the runoff determines whether GOP leaders’ concerns about cost and competitiveness will be tested in November.