Trump Endorses Paxton Over Cornyn in Texas GOP Senate Runoff
President Donald Trump has endorsed Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton over incumbent Senator John Cornyn in the Republican Senate primary runoff, a late-breaking intervention that reshapes the race just one week before the May 26 election. Trump announced his decision on Truth Social on Tuesday, the first day of early voting, after months of speculation about whether he would weigh in.
“Ken is a true MAGA Warrior who has ALWAYS delivered for Texas, and will continue to do so in the United States Senate,” Trump wrote. Of Cornyn, he added: “John Cornyn is a good man, and I worked well with him, but he was not supportive of me when times were tough,” as NBC News reported.
A Divided Party
The endorsement marks the culmination of a bitter intraparty battle between Texas Republicans’ establishment and MAGA wings. Cornyn, a four-term incumbent who has served in the Senate since 2002, finished just ahead of Paxton in the March 3 primary with 42% of the vote to Paxton’s 41%, forcing the runoff. U.S. Rep. Wesley Hunt finished third and later endorsed Paxton after Trump’s announcement.
Paxton, a staunch Trump ally who has served as Texas attorney general since 2015, was impeached by the Republican-controlled Texas House in 2023 on bribery and corruption charges but was acquitted by the state Senate. He is also in the midst of a public divorce from state Sen. Angela Paxton. Despite these controversies, he has positioned himself as the true inheritor of Trump’s movement, as the Houston Chronicle detailed.
Timing and Strategy
Trump’s decision came after weeks of deliberation. He had initially signaled in March that he would endorse after the primary, but the endorsement was delayed as both campaigns lobbied heavily. At one point, Paxton offered to “consider” dropping out if Senate leadership agreed to eliminate the filibuster to pass the SAVE America Act, a voting rights bill requiring proof of citizenship for registration.
According to sources familiar with Trump’s thinking, recent polling showing Paxton gaining ground, combined with frustration at Senate Majority Leader John Thune’s opposition to certain White House priorities, helped push the president toward Paxton. Steve Bannon, the former Trump strategist who backed Paxton, characterized the endorsement as “as much a vote of no confidence in John Thune as it is a vote of confidence in Ken Paxton.”
National Implications
The Texas Senate race carries significant national stakes. Republicans hold a narrow Senate majority, and a competitive general election in Texas could force the party to divert resources from other battlegrounds. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., warned that the race could become “three times more expensive” for Republicans if Paxton is the nominee.
Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, who faces her own competitive reelection, criticized the endorsement, calling Paxton “an ethically challenged individual” and saying Cornyn “deserved, in my judgment, the president’s support.”
Rice University political science professor Mark Jones said the endorsement shifts the dynamics significantly. “This is late in the game, many people have already made their decision,” Jones told the Houston Chronicle. “This affects undecided voters. It’s going to push more of them towards Paxton.”
The Cornyn Response
Cornyn responded to the endorsement with a statement on X, noting that Trump had “consistently called me a friend in this race” and pivoting to the general election. “It is now time for Texas Republican voters to decide if they want a strong nominee to help our GOP candidates down ballot and defeat Talarico in November, or a weak nominee who jeopardizes everything we care about,” he wrote.
The Democratic nominee, state Rep. James Talarico, won a competitive primary and will face the Republican nominee in the November 3 general election. Democrats have not won a Senate race in Texas since 1988, but they view the divisive GOP primary as a potential opening, as Wikipedia notes.
What to Watch
With early voting already underway, the immediate question is whether Trump’s endorsement can deliver enough undecided voters to push Paxton past Cornyn in the May 26 runoff. If Paxton wins, the party will face the challenge of uniting behind a candidate carrying significant legal and personal baggage — and defending a Senate seat that could determine control of the chamber.
The runoff represents the latest chapter in Trump’s ongoing campaign to reshape the Republican Party in his image, rewarding loyalty and punishing those he perceives as insufficiently supportive. The outcome in Texas will send a powerful signal about the president’s enduring influence within the GOP.