Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton just scored a big win, defeating incumbent Sen. John Cornyn in a Republican Senate runoff, CNBC reported. This outcome arrives just a week after President Donald Trump threw his weight behind Paxton, endorsing the challenger despite the clear objections from Senate leadership.
This result makes Cornyn the latest in a line of lawmakers to feel the heat from President Trump’s mission to challenge members of his own party who he feels aren’t supportive enough. This victory further solidifies the president’s influence in shaping the Republican Party’s nominees, especially as we look toward the 2026 midterm elections.
Democrats, on the other hand, are pretty excited about Paxton’s win. They believe he’s beatable in the general election, largely because of his extensive ethical and legal troubles. Texas has been a long-sought prize for Democrats, and they see an opening here. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee Chair Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand wasted no time in releasing a statement. They said, “While Republicans are facing their nightmare scenario, tonight Democrats are one step closer to winning a Senate majority, and in November, Texas will send James Talarico to the Senate.”
The result really shows you the power of a presidential endorsement in today’s political landscape
They didn’t hold back, adding, “Ken Paxton is so corrupt that even his own party tried to remove him from office, and during his tenure as Attorney General, criminals have walked free while Paxton and his wealthy donors have profited at the expense of Texas families.”
Paxton will now go head-to-head with Democratic state legislator James Talarico in the general election this November. This race is shaping up to be one of the most expensive in the nation, with the GOP fighting hard to maintain control of the Senate and Democrats pushing for a long-sought Senate seat in Texas.
President Trump has really made it a priority in his second term to challenge political opponents within the GOP. We’ve seen this play out in other races too. Sen. Bill Cassidy, for instance, didn’t even make it to a runoff in Louisiana earlier in May after President Trump endorsed his opponent in the primary. And Rep. Thomas Massie, who has often been at odds with President Trump, lost his primary to Trump-backed challenger Ed Gallrein.
President Trump’s endorsement of Paxton last week really sent ripples through the Republican-controlled Senate. They had poured significant resources into Cornyn’s reelection bid, and Cornyn himself had taken extensive steps to try and mend his relationship with President Trump, which has been strained over the years.
This primary in Texas has been one of the messiest of the 2026 campaign cycle, with Cornyn’s campaign slamming Paxton, a close Trump ally, over a whole host of ethical and legal scandals that have plagued his tenure as Texas’s top law enforcement official. Paxton was even impeached by the Texas House of Representatives, though he was later acquitted by the Senate, and he’s also been indicted for securities fraud. He recently divorced his wife on what she described as “biblical grounds.”
Paxton’s campaign, for its part, tried to paint Cornyn as a longtime Washington establishment figure. Cornyn is a four-term incumbent and holds significant standing in the Senate, having served as the Senate Republican Whip, the second-highest position, from 2013 to 2019. He lost a bid to lead Republicans in the Senate in 2024 to Senate Majority Leader John Thune, but he’s still popular among his colleagues. Senate Republicans believed Cornyn would have been a more formidable, and less expensive, opponent for Talarico in the general election.
After President Trump’s endorsement, Paxton was definitely the favorite to win the primary. A Quantus Insights poll released on Monday showed Paxton leading Cornyn by 9.3 percentage points heading into Election Day, so this outcome isn’t entirely a surprise.
President Trump’s Truth Social post endorsing Paxton was pretty clear. He said Cornyn is “a good man, and I worked well with him, but he was not supportive of me when times were tough.” He continued, “Ken Paxton has gone through a lot, in many cases, very unfairly, but he is a Fighter, and knows how to WIN. Our Country needs Fighters, and also Loyalty to the Cause of Greatness.”
Interestingly, Cornyn has been a reliable vote for the White House throughout President Trump’s second term. However, now that he’s unshackled from electoral consequences, he might become a crucial swing vote in the chamber, which Republicans control by a slim three votes.
Published: May 27, 2026 04:30 pm