President Donald Trump announced Tuesday his backing of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in the Republican primary runoff, energizing Paxton’s campaign to unseat incumbent Senator John Cornyn ahead of next week’s election.
Trump declared on social media that Paxton is “a true MAGA Warrior who has ALWAYS delivered for Texas and will continue to do so in the United States Senate.”
The announcement came during a Paxton rally, sparking celebration among attendees who broke into dancing to “YMCA,” a familiar tune from Trump rallies.
“I have so much respect for the president and appreciate so much his endorsement,” Paxton told supporters at the Allen, Texas gathering.
Both candidates qualified for the May 26 runoff after emerging as the leading vote-getters in the March 3 primary, where no contender secured a majority. Early voting began Monday and runs through Friday.
This endorsement represents another example of Trump’s strategy to eliminate Republicans who have opposed him from the party. His recent victories include the defeats of Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy in Louisiana and Indiana state senators who challenged him on redistricting matters.
Trump also selected and backed a challenger to Kentucky U.S. Rep. Thomas Massie in Tuesday’s primary. Massie’s efforts to release the Jeffrey Epstein files and his vocal opposition to the Iran war have frustrated Trump, whose backing of Ed Gallrein is creating Massie’s toughest reelection battle to date.
While the four-term Cornyn has supported Trump’s agenda in Washington, Paxton has positioned himself as a champion for the Make America Great Again movement. Trump’s backing puts him in conflict with his party’s establishment, which believes Cornyn offers the stronger candidacy for November’s general election. The Republican winner will face Democratic state Rep. James Talarico.
A Contentious and Costly Republican Fight
At a campaign stop in Lubbock later Tuesday, Cornyn acknowledged Trump’s endorsement “will certainly have an impact on the race” but declared “we’re not giving up the fight.”
“I know who gets to choose our senators and it’s the people of Texas,” Cornyn stated. “And there’s no substitute for that.”
Cornyn, who confirmed he had not discussed the endorsement with Trump, reinforced his campaign message that in November’s general election against Talarico, Paxton would be “a weak nominee who jeopardizes everything we care about.”
Talarico responded in a statement that “it doesn’t matter who wins this runoff. We already know who we’re running against: the billionaire megadonors and their corrupt political system.”
In his social media message, Trump called Cornyn “a good man,” but criticized that “he was not supportive of me when times were tough.” He expressed frustration that “John was very late in backing me in what turned out to be a Historic Run for the Republican Nomination.”
The contest between Cornyn and Paxton has become a harsh and costly fight over the Republican Party’s direction, pulling resources away from other competitive races nationwide.
Cornyn’s campaign and supporting super PACs have dramatically outspent Paxton on advertisements since last year, with most funding targeting attacks on Paxton. This week, Cornyn’s campaign and allied groups will have invested over $87 million in advertising, according to AdImpact, an ad-tracking company, including more than $18.5 million since the March 3 primary.
Paxton’s campaign and a single super PAC have spent significantly less than pro-Cornyn organizations, totaling $9.2 million on advertising, with approximately $4.9 million spent since the primary election on March 3.
Capitol Hill Worries
Senate Republicans emerged from a luncheon expressing disappointment over Trump’s decision and its consequences for Cornyn. GOP leaders have publicly expressed concern that Republicans will need to invest millions more in a general election with Paxton as the nominee.
“I’m sad, I’m actually sad,” said Republican Sen. Cynthia Lummis, explaining she believed Cornyn had superior chances in the general election.
“Now it’ll just cost us a fortune,” she added.
The endorsement energized attendees at Paxton’s Tuesday event. Caroline Zadeh called it an “awesome thing” and said she trusts “Trump to do the right thing.”
“We’ve had Cornyn in the office for quite a while,” she expressed regarding her frustrations with the senator, noting “a lot of controversy between him and Trump’s administration.”
On the opposing side, Bennie Newman, 84, said he cast his ballot for Cornyn on Tuesday before learning of the endorsement, which came as “a surprise” and “a disappointment.”
Newman supports Trump, but would still have chosen Cornyn because he “has almost been impeccable in terms of his reputation,” he explained. Citing some of Paxton’s controversies, he argued that the attorney general would be a less viable candidate against Talarico in November’s general election.
Trump has maintained a sometimes strained relationship with Cornyn, particularly after the senator suggested in 2023 that Trump could not secure the presidency again in 2024 and that his “time has passed him by.”
Cornyn also initially criticized Trump’s plan for a border wall between the U.S. and Mexico — a project he now endorses.
A former state attorney general and state Supreme Court judge, Cornyn first won statewide office 36 years ago. His reserved approach and judicial demeanor differ from the passionate rhetoric of Trump and his Make America Great Again movement.
Cornyn has received backing from Senate Republican leadership, including South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott, chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, who cautioned that “it is a strong possibility we cannot hold Texas if John Cornyn is not our nominee.”
Some Republican leaders have expressed concern the party will need to allocate significantly more money to defend the seat with Paxton as the nominee — funds they could direct toward Senate races in more competitive states. Paxton was acquitted in a 2023 impeachment trial on corruption charges. He also reached a deal in 2024 to end a long-running securities fraud case.
