"The possibility of a Texas Senate win for Democrats emerged from a fractious Republican primary in which scandal-plagued MAGA zealot and state attorney general Ken Paxton is challenging four-term incumbent John Cornyn, a pillar of the GOP's conservative Establishment. Paxton has survived multiple near-political-death experiences, including a 2023 impeachment by the Texas House on corruption charges, mostly by being more radical and MAGA aligned than anyone else in a proudly extremist state party."
"And now he's in a good position to take down Cornyn, who late in 2024 narrowly lost to John Thune for the position of Senate Majority Leader. Despite a vast fundraising advantage for the incumbent, Paxton has led Cornyn in eight of the ten public polls of the race. The first round of the primary is on March 3, with early voting beginning on February 17."
Texas is positioned as a pivotal battleground for the 2026 midterms due to strategic Republican maneuvers, shifting Latino voter behavior, and aggressive state-level conservative policies. A mid-decade congressional gerrymander was implemented to bolster Republican House prospects. State GOP officials have pursued restrictive abortion measures and expanded privatization of public education. Democrats see a Texas Senate pickup as essential to blocking future Trump judicial and executive appointments and to gaining legislative leverage. The Republican Senate primary is deeply divided, with Ken Paxton challenging incumbent John Cornyn and polling showing Paxton ahead despite Cornyn's fundraising advantage and an expected runoff.
Read at Intelligencer
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