Ken Paxton just pulled off one of the biggest political comebacks in Texas history. The Trump-backed attorney general flipped a 2.5-point deficit into a landslide Senate primary runoff victory that reshaped the Republican race.
Donald Trump backed Ken Paxton wins Texas election
Ken Paxton won the Texas Republican Senate primary runoff election on Tuesday. The former attorney general defeated incumbent Sen. John Cornyn by a 27-point margin, according to the New York Post. President Donald Trump endorsed Paxton just one week before the vote.
Paxton secured 63.8% of the vote against Cornyn’s 36.2% in the decisive contest. Cornyn had initially led Paxton by 2.5 percentage points in the March 3 primary. However, neither candidate reached the 50% threshold needed to avoid a runoff.
Trump’s backing proved pivotal in reversing the earlier result. Paxton called the endorsement “the most powerful force in politics” after locking up the nomination. “When everyone in Washington told him to abandon me and abandon the people of Texas he didn’t listen,” Paxton said. “Instead, he gave his complete and total endorsement.”
The victory marks the third recent result showcasing Trump’s influence over the Republican Party. Sen. Bill Cassidy and Rep. Thomas Massie both lost their races in the preceding 10 days. GOP establishment figures had urged Trump to back Cornyn instead.
Paxton will now face Democratic state Rep. James Talarico in the November 3 general election. The most recent poll showed Paxton and Talarico in a dead heat at 45% each. Texans have not elected a Democratic senator since Lloyd Bentsen won in 1988.
“My opponent is the most extreme radical the Democrats have ever nominated,” Paxton said during his victory speech. Meanwhile, Cornyn pledged to support the Republican ticket despite the bruising primary campaign. “I’ve said throughout this race that I trust the voters of Texas, and they’ve made their decision, and I respect it,” Cornyn added.
The Texas Senate primaries became the most expensive in U.S. history, with over $110 million spent on advertising.
Originally reported by Vritti Johar on Mandatory.com.
