President Donald Trump endorsed Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in the state’s contentious Senate GOP primary, dealing a blow to incumbent Sen. John Cornyn who is running for another term.
Trump announced his support for Paxton in a post on Truth Social on Tuesday, ending months of speculation that the president would endorse against the candidate Republicans view as a stronger contender. The endorsement comes just one week before the runoff election.
“John Cornyn is a good man, and I worked well with him, but he was not supportive of me when times were tough and, despite having the Most Successful Economy in the History of our Country during my First Term and, with all of the many other things that I accomplished,” Trump wrote. “Ken Paxton has gone through a lot, in many cases, very unfairly, but he is a Fighter, and knows how to WIN.”
Senate Republicans spent months pleading with Trump to endorse Cornyn, who they view as a better candidate to defeat Democratic candidate James Talarico.
What polls show in Texas Senate race
Early polling shows Cornyn with a greater chance to defeat Talarico, with Paxton either trailing or in a dead heat with the Democratic nominee. Talarico leads both in recent polling, but the race has been rated as likely Republican by the nonpartisan Cook Political Report.
A Democrat hasn’t won a statewide race in Texas since 1994.
Some Republicans were quick to respond to Trump’s endorsement, calling it a disappointment. Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska told reporters on Tuesday that Democrats were more likely to win the race now that Trump has thrown his support behind Paxton.
“How does that help strengthen the president’s hand when we lose a state like Texas?” she said.
Cornyn came ahead of Paxton in the Senate primary in March, but the two advanced to a runoff election after neither candidate garnered more than 50% of the vote.