Trump-backed Paxton steamrolled John Cornyn in the Senate runoff. Now he turns to trying to unify Republicans for November as Democrats sharpen attacks

John Thune backs Ken Paxton for Senate after Texas runoff victory, urging Republicans to go all in to prevent Democrats from flipping the key seat.

Paxton has trailed Democratic state Rep. James Talarico in fundraising, and some Republicans say the party will have to spend millions to win the Senate race.

By beating John Cornyn, Ken Paxton doesn't just knock off a D.C. power player but validates a fresh style of MAGA campaigning.

“We’ve got to pivot” to support Ken Paxton to keep the state in Republican hands, says top Republican John Thune.

Texas Democrats still haven’t won a statewide race since 1994 or a Senate race since 1988, the year before James Talarico was born. But it’s a question that’s clearly legitimate in 2026. That’s because Democrats got their coveted opponent in the state’s US Senate race: the baggage-ridden Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton.

Few politicians have garnered as much scandal in Texas as Paxton, but he has ignited the MAGA base, who see him as a fighter.

Republican Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said in March that he would consider dropping out of the Texas Senate race