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Voters in Texas made some big decisions in some closely watched races in the May 26 runoff election, deciding who will be the Republican nominee to face Democrat James Talarico for the United States Senate. They also determined who the nominees are in both parties, battling it out for a newly drawn United States congressional district.
In the view of many, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s campaign received a major boost on May 19 when President Donald Trump gave him his highly coveted endorsement.
Seven days later, Texas Republicans backed Paxton in droves. Paxton earned 63.8% of the vote while Sen. John Cornyn, the incumbent, mustered only 38.2% of the vote.
Cornyn narrowly beat Paxton by a single percentage point in the March primary election, 42% to 41%, but Cornyn did not get the necessary 50% plus one needed to win the nomination outright.
The long-time senator, who was first elected in 2002, has gone to great lengths to highlight his efforts to support Trump’s agenda. Recently, he reintroduced a bill to create Interstate 47 in honor of the president. It didn’t work. Trump went with his long-time MAGA ally Paxton.
Republicans hope conservative voters coalesce behind Paxton and show up at the polls in November to defeat Talarico, who won his primary outright in March. No Democrat has won statewide office in Texas in more than 30 years. Republicans are hoping that streak continues in 2026.
The newly drawn U.S. Congressional District 35 now has its candidates who will vie for the seat in November. Greg Casar, who represents the current version of the district, was drawn out of it when the Texas Legislature redrew the congressional map last year in a special session. He will seek re-election in District 37, which is represented by long-time lawmaker Lloyd Doggett, who is retiring.
In March, Republicans John Lujan and Carlos De La Cruz were the top two vote-getters among 11 candidates who appeared on the ballot.
During the May 26 runoff, however, De La Cruz (57.6% of the vote; 18,827 votes total) earned nearly 5,000 more votes than Lujan (42.4% of the vote; 13,837 votes total) and secured the runoff victory.
Lujan, the state representative for District 118, previously earned the endorsement of Gov. Greg Abbott. De La Cruz, a retired Air Force veteran, was endorsed by President Trump.
The Democratic race has received a lot more attention in the last few weeks, as many Democrats, from Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries to Senate nominee James Talarico, have condemned a series of antisemitic comments from candidate Maureen Galindo. Johnny Garcia, himself, has denounced the comments, and the two have sparred over allegations of antisemitism.
At the ballot box on May 26, most Democratic voters threw their support behind Garcia, who earned 63.8% of the vote. Galindo garnered 36.2% of the vote.
De La Cruz and Garcia will now represent their respective parties in November.
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