Texas Sen. John Cornyn and Attorney General Ken Paxton will compete in a May runoff for the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate.
Cornyn, who is seeking a fifth term, and Paxton were the top finishers in a three-way contest Tuesday with Rep. Wesley Hunt. No candidate hit the 50% vote threshold needed to win outright, sending the race to a May 26 runoff.
Cornyn’s campaign and allied super PACs spent heavily on television advertising, much of it criticizing Paxton. Senate Republican leaders, who are backing Cornyn, argue that it will cost more to defend the seat in a general election if Paxton is the nominee.
Paxton was acquitted in impeachment proceedings and has faced accusations of marital infidelity.
New voting rules snarl process
Voting was extended in Dallas County and Williamson County, outside Austin, after voters reported being turned away and directed to different voting precincts because of new primary rules. Paxton’s office later challenged a decision keeping the polls open longer, and the state Supreme Court ruled that ballots cast by people not in line by 7 p.m. should be separated from others.
It was not immediately clear how the court’s action would be carried out.
The races also featured new congressional district boundaries that GOP lawmakers — urged on by Trump — redrew to help elect more Republicans.
Cornyn fights to hold seat
Cornyn is hoping to avoid becoming the first Republican senator in Texas history not to be renominated.
His cool relationship with Trump is part of what makes Cornyn vulnerable. He and allied groups have spent at least $64 million in television advertising alone since July to try stabilize his support.
Paxton began campaigning in earnest only last month. He's made national headlines for filing lawsuits against Democratic initiatives. He remained popular in Texas despite a 2023 impeachment trial on corruption charges, of which he was acquitted, and accusations of marital infidelity by his wife.
On Tuesday evening a man wearing a camouflage hat, sunglasses and a mask covering his mouth and nose entered the Uptown Marriott hotel in Dallas, where Paxton was expected to address supporters later. He was asked to leave, and it was not clear whether his presence was connected to Paxon's event. The man was later detained by police, who removed ammunition magazines and shotgun shells from his vehicle. Paxton's campaign declined to comment.
All three Republicans have run ads boasting of their coziness with Trump. But Senate GOP leaders, who are backing Cornyn, worry that Paxton's liabilities would make it harder to defend the seat if he is the nominee — and require significant spending that could be better used elsewhere.
“Republican voters are going to need to decide, do we want to win?” Cornyn told Fox News Channel.
Hunt's entry into the race in October made it trickier for any primary candidate to win at least 50%, the threshold needed to avoid a May 26 runoff.
MORE ELECTIONS | Roy Cooper and Michael Whatley clinch North Carolina Senate nods, setting up high-stakes fall fight
Key House primaries
Texas Republicans' mid-decade redistricting was aimed at helping the GOP pick up Democratic-held seats and maintain its threadbare House majority in Washington. The result matched several Democratic incumbents in primary fights and set up new general election battlegrounds.
In the 34th District, former Rep. Mayra Flores is attempting a comeback. Flores made history in a 2022 special election as the first Republican to win in the Rio Grande Valley in 150 years, but lost her bid for a full term later that year. She faces Eric Flores, a lawyer endorsed by Trump, for the nomination to run against Democratic Rep. Vicente Gonzalez.
In the 23rd District, Rep. Tony Gonzales is considered vulnerable after an alleged affair with a staffer who killed herself. He's being challenged by gun manufacturer and YouTube influencer Brandon Herrera, who calls himself “the AK guy.” The district includes Uvalde, site of a deadly 2022 shooting at Robb Elementary School.
Republican Rep. Dan Crenshaw is challenged in the 2nd District by state Rep. Steve Toth, who was endorsed by Sen. Ted Cruz.
Former Major League Baseball star Mark Teixeira is running as a Republican to succeed Republican Chip Roy in southwest Texas’ 21st District.
Democrat Bobby Pulido, a Latin Grammy winner, is running in South Texas' 15th District against physician Ada Cuellar. The nominee will face two-term Republican Rep. Monica De La Cruz.
In the 33rd District, Democratic Rep. Julie Johnson faces former Rep. Colin Allred, a former NFL linebacker and 2024 Senate nominee.
Democratic Rep. Al Green also is fighting to stay in office after his Houston-based 9th District was drawn to be lean Republican. Green, 78, is now running in a newly drawn 18th District against Democratic Rep. Christian Menefee, 37, who won a January special election for the current 18th District.
Easy win for Abbott, will face Hinojosa
Republican Gov. Greg Abbott easily won his primary and will face Democratic state Rep. Gina Hinojosa.
Roy who is running for attorney general, will face a primary runoff with Mayes Middleton after neither captured more than 50% of the votes Tuesday.
