Updated March 3, 2026 — CBS News
CBS News projects that Sen. John Cornyn and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton will advance to a runoff in the Republican primary for the U.S. Senate after neither candidate cleared the 50% threshold. The runoff is scheduled for May 26.
Cornyn, a long-serving senator seeking a fourth term, and Paxton, who is running for a third term as attorney general, emerged as the top two vote-getters in a high‑spending, hard-fought primary that also included Rep. Wesley Hunt. The Senate GOP’s campaign arm and other allies spent heavily to support Cornyn, and by Feb. 23 AdImpact reported more than $110 million had been poured into television advertising across the race — a record for a Senate primary in Texas.
Neither former President Donald Trump nor his team has formally endorsed a candidate in the contest. Trump said he liked all three contenders and recently appeared with them at a Corpus Christi rally. A February University of Houston Hobby School of Public Affairs survey found 55% of Republican primary voters were more likely to back a candidate with Trump’s endorsement.
The campaign turned sharply negative on election night, with both frontrunners trading character attacks. Cornyn warned that Paxton’s candidacy would threaten Republican prospects and criticized his fitness for higher office. Paxton accused Cornyn of trying to buy the primary with massive spending and cast the results as validation of his grassroots support.
Cornyn, 74, has rarely faced serious primary opposition. He won more votes in Texas in 2020 than then‑President Trump and has held senior Senate leadership posts, including majority whip, GOP conference vice chair and chair of the National Republican Senatorial Committee.
Paxton has cultivated a devoted base and positioned himself as a close Trump ally. He was a lead plaintiff in a 2020 lawsuit seeking to overturn presidential results in four states; the Supreme Court quickly dismissed that case. Paxton spoke at the Jan. 6, 2021, Ellipse rally and later blamed antifa for the violence at the Capitol. As attorney general, he was among the most active state officials suing the Biden administration, marking his 100th litigation against federal policies by November 2024.
The campaign has highlighted Cornyn’s conservative credentials and long tenure, while opponents have emphasized Paxton’s legal and ethical controversies. Paxton’s public record includes a 2015 Collin County grand jury indictment on securities fraud charges that were dismissed nine years later as part of a deal in which he agreed to restitution and community service. In 2023, the Texas House impeached Paxton on 20 counts, including bribery and abuse of public trust; the House vote was 121-23. The state Senate tried 16 counts, but only two Republican senators voted to convict on any charge, leaving Paxton short of the two-thirds threshold required for removal. Then‑President Trump praised Paxton after the acquittal.
The impeachment proceedings raised additional allegations, including claims about an extramarital relationship and questions about witnesses whose testimony was never presented. Paxton’s wife at the time, then‑State Sen. Angela Paxton, was barred from participating in the impeachment process but attended the trial and later filed for divorce in 2025, citing personal and religious reasons.
Following the impeachment effort, Paxton vowed political retaliation against those he blamed for leading the charge. The episode had tangible political fallout for some lawmakers involved: the House speaker at the time, Dade Phelan, faced a difficult primary and subsequently stepped down from his leadership role, and Rep. Andrew Murr, who chaired the House impeachment board, did not seek reelection.
The forced runoff sets up a stark choice for Texas Republicans: a veteran Senate leader with deep party ties and institutional support, or a combative attorney general with a passionate base and a history of legal and political controversies. The winner of the May 26 runoff will be the Republican nominee for the U.S. Senate seat.