Posted on 03/03/2026 8:48:55 PM PST by nickcarraway
The competitive Republican primary for Senate in Texas is headed to a runoff, according to a Decision Desk HQ projection.
The race will head to a May 26 showdown between incumbent Sen. John Cornyn and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton as Republicans scramble to keep the seat in GOP hands.
Neither Cornyn nor Paxton won the 50 percent-plus-one support they needed to avoid a runoff against a third competitor, Rep. Wesley Hunt, who was pulling in double-digit support in polls ahead of the race. Polls had also shown Paxton with a slight lead.
The upcoming runoff will pit the four-term incumbent senator against the controversial attorney general as national Republicans warn against a possible Paxton win and Democrats gain steam across the aisle.
In February, the National Republican Senatorial Committee cited internal polling in a memo arguing that Cornyn was “the only Republican candidate who reliably wins a general election matchup” and that Texas “cannot afford to be a gamble” in the high-stakes midterms.
Ahead of Tuesday’s primary, Cornyn had warned of a “massacre” for the Texas GOP if Paxton won the nomination, pointing to controversy that has dogged the state attorney general, and raised alarm about Democrats possibly flipping the seat in November.
The leading candidates have emphasized their alignment with President Trump, who declined to endorse ahead of Tuesday’s primary and has previously said he likes “all three.”
Democrats are increasingly bullish about their chances of winning as they liken this year’s momentum to 2018, when Democrat Beto O’Rourke came within a couple points of ousting Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas).
As Republicans battled in their primary on Tuesday, two rising Democratic stars — state Rep. James Talarico and Rep. Jasmine Crockett — were squaring off in their party’s contest.
Republicans have long dominated statewide leadership in the Lone Star State and are favored to hold onto the seat in November.
The closely watched race, which marks the kickoff of this year’s midterm cycle, has already hit spending records. Republicans are favored to hold on to the seat, but many fret that Democratic momentum will force their party to pour more money into a seat that’s long been an easy lift.
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heads they win. tails we lose.
I can’t take any writer seriously when Jasmine Crockett is defined as a rising start.
Hunt was a spoiler. I assume his votes would have split more for Paxton than Cornyn.
✓The Associated Press has projected a runoff.
An estimated 70.43% of votes have been counted, according to the Associated Press.
Candidates Votes Pct.
✓John Cornyn 701,918 42.3%
✓Ken Paxton 678,841 40.9
Wesley Hunt 216,777 13.1
Sara Canady 19,455 1.2
Yep
Typical Dem/RINO move
13k more votes cast in the dim primary for the senate than in the repub race...?? worrisome
Should they make it illegal for conservatives to run in Texas?
The trouble has been brewing there for a long time.
Looks like Paxton should have enough votes to beat Cornyn.
I voted for Hunt. I will have difficulty choosing between Paxton or Cornyn.
I want Paxton to win.
I’m convinced Cornyn is going to win. These Establishment republicans such as Cornyn are like barnacles.
How about News Cum?
Cornyn has always been a Mitch McConnell stooge.
I like Hunt as well, but my primary concern was getting rid of Cornyn. Personal preference and such.
Yeah because handing control of the US Senate to Chucky Schumer is no problem as long as your narcissistic self worship of your dogmatic political purity is maintained.
“gee Churchill on the primary instead of of Regana” I guess I will sit home and let Hitler win. it will be terrible, but at least I can sit at my computer and pat myself on the back for my political purity every day.
Are Freeper really this politically stupid now?
But he can run for governor in Texas. He can probably get elected there in a few years.
Which one is Paxton?
Interestingly, there was a proposition on the repub ballot to disallow repub state house leaders from appointing dims to head committees. Hope that passes as it’s been a stinkin problem here for far too long. My ballet was 102 pages long with only one race per page. It took forever to complete on the voting machine.
I despise Cornyn for being so corrupt for so long that we might as well fall on our swords if he becomes the candidate. He is literally no different than a Democrat.
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