Posted on 04/20/2026 10:47:30 AM PDT by RandFan
A new poll from the nonpartisan Texas Public Opinion Research (TPOR) shows state Attorney General Ken Paxton leading Sen. John Cornyn by 8 percentage points among likely voters in the Republican Senate primary runoff on May 26.
The poll, released Friday and conducted by the polling firm Slingshot Strategies on behalf of TPOR, shows Paxton leading Cornyn by a margin of 48% to 40%, with 11% undecided.
Perhaps most significantly, the poll indicates that, even if President Donald Trump were to endorse Cornyn, it would not give him enough of a boost to close the gap with Paxton.
Trump, who had previously said he was planning to endorse a candidate in the contest, has so far stayed out of the race. But in the event of a Trump endorsement, the poll says, Paxton would still lead Cornyn by 45% to 42%. By contrast, a Trump endorsement of Paxton would widen the attorney general's lead over the incumbent U.S. senator to 55% to 35%.
"That is in large part because the MAGA coalition in Texas in this electorate is behind Paxton," said Evan Roth Smith, a founding partner at Slingshot Strategies.
(Excerpt) Read more at houstonpublicmedia.org ...
Dear FRiends,
We need your continuing support to keep FR funded. Your donations are our sole source of funding. No sugar daddies, no advertisers, no paid memberships, no commercial sales, no gimmicks, no tax subsidies. No spam, no pop-ups, no ad trackers.
If you enjoy using FR and agree it's a worthwhile endeavor, please consider making a contribution today:
Click here: to donate by Credit Card
Or here: to donate by PayPal
Or by mail to: Free Republic, LLC - PO Box 9771 - Fresno, CA 93794
Thank you very much and God bless you,
Jim
Yay!
RINO Cornhole has a Liberty Score of “F”.
If Thune...uhhh, I mean, Cornyn wins, it will be due to cheating.
Perhaps Trump is waiting to name AG until after this run-off as Paxton may be available although I’d love to see Cornyn defeated.
I don’t remember him voting no on anything. Paul, Massey and Tillis are the worst politicians in Congress .
And Thune won’t give Paxton a dime. But he’d throw millions at Cornyn.
He’ll send millions to Collins and any other RINO running and he’ll ignore GA and NC.
Just like Mitch.
Paxton may not be perfect, but Cornyn has stabbed conservatives in the back at every opportunity. He is like John McCain.
The path to victory is with Ken Paxton.
Looking good Ken. Keep on treading water for now.
Much rather Paxton wins but if the Rinos need for Cornyn win bribe to get the SAVE Act across the finish line, so be it. Much more important in the long run.
Cornyn needs to go. He is among the worst of the back stabbing rino’s. We badly need the seat but Cornyn needs to go. Period.
“if the Rinos need for Cornyn win bribe to get the SAVE Act across the finish line, so be it“
Big picture you should be right but we know the rats in the blue states have prepped and will subvert the save act should it pass.
The main reason Trump has refrained from endorsing Cornyn which I believe was his initial intention.
We’ll know on May 27 if this poll is correct.
Major Yay!
Ken has earned the right thru his deeds.
At 72, Cornyn should not have sought reelection. But he did. Paxton sensed a vulnerability and jumped at it. Within a month of his announcement, he was observed cavorting around a Dallas hotel with his latest mistress (a so-called “Christian influencer”). This is not some “youthful indiscretion”, this is in 2025!
Like it or not, this behavior pattern is a real turnoff to many of the evangelical voters who faithfully participate in GOP primaries (such as the very influential Pastor Jack Graham in the Dallas area). No surprise that Cornyn defeated Paxton in the Dallas area (Paxton’s base) during round 1.
Should Paxton prevail, the big fear in the general election is that a large number of evangelical voters will sit this race out in November, while a well-funded Talerico will work to thread the needle with his messaging in order to expand his appeal to independents. Senator Talerico would be a nightmare of the highest order. Cornyn, on the other hand, would make mincemeat of Talerico.
Painful as it is, I will hold my nose and vote for Cornyn in the primary.
YES!!!!
Kick RINO Cornhole to the curb. He has been an embarrassment for Texas for decades.
I fly the texas flag here in PA due to Ken Paxon’s courage to try to right the wrongs of the 2016 election.
If evangelicals want a democrat Senate and Senator from the Democratic party representing them in Texas.
“Then sit this one out.... like crybabies, you’ll deserve the results.”
I’ll be voting for Paxton, I don’t know how he will do as a senator. But I do know that Cornhole is a back stabbing rino that supports the islamacrats above the Republican party.
Goodbye Cornyn.
Cassidy is the next RINO on the chopping block.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.