Cornyn and Paxton make final pitch for runoff election
Here’s what you need to know about the ballot runoff.
Fox – 4 News
A senior Texas senator is defending his position in a runoff election on Tuesday, May 26th.
Sen. John Cornyn, who was first elected in 2002, will face Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in a runoff after neither candidate received more than 50% of the vote in the March primary. During this election-packed month, national attention has focused on this unique race, serving as another test of President Donald Trump’s support in the midterm elections. Mr. Paxton has the support of Mr. Trump and is running against Mr. Cornyn, who has sometimes opposed the president.
“This is definitely a race to watch,” said Blake Farrar, an associate professor of political science at Texas State University. “It not only tells us a lot about the state of the Republican Party in Texas and perhaps the nation, but it could also have a huge impact on the race in November…John Cornyn will once again face a challenge from the right in this runoff.”
Cornyn is a longtime conservative.
Cornyn, 74, has had a long career in public office, having served four terms in the Senate.
He served as a district judge for six years before joining the Texas Supreme Court in 1990, according to a biography on his web page. He then became Texas Attorney General in 1998 and served one term before being elected to the U.S. Senate in 2002. Cornyn serves on the Senate Finance, Judiciary, Intelligence, Foreign Affairs, and Budget committees.
“(Cornyn) is on a par with Paxton on most issues, but he has legislative experience and has shown a willingness to try to build consensus on important national issues,” said Matthew Eshbaugh-Soha, a political science professor at the University of North Texas.
Farrar said this is not the first time Cornyn has faced off against another faction within the party. Many thought Cornyn would be the next candidate to replace Sen. Mitch McConnell as Republican Majority Leader in 2024, but he lost to Sen. John Thune.
“This was a surprise to many, but not to Republicans.”pThese are the members of the art community who booed him at the 2022 Texas Republican State Convention in Houston,” Farrar said.
Mr. Cornyn has also criticized Mr. Trump and has signaled a willingness to work with him across the aisle, troubling MAGA supporters, Mr. Farah said.
“Mr. Cornyn angered many Republicans because of his work as the party’s chief negotiator and because of his support for bipartisan legislation passed after the Uvalde school shooting,” Farrar said.
Meanwhile, Trump’s support for Paxton has angered some of Cornyn’s colleagues. Thune told reporters at his weekly news conference that he has been making his position clear on the Texas Senate primary for months. Despite Trump’s decision, he vowed to continue supporting Cornyn.
“If you want a candidate who takes conservative positions but who seeks to build consensus on important national issues to actually legislate, Mr. Cornyn is the candidate,” Eshbaugh-Soha said.
Why are runoffs important in midterm elections?
Farrar says the Republican runoffs are a key turning point in the party’s path to the November midterm elections. If Mr. Paxton can unseat the senior senator, it would be a notable indicator of the party’s alignment with Mr. Trump, despite low approval ratings, the ongoing war in Iran and rising fuel costs.
“If Paxton can win, it would be a huge signal that the ‘Trumpers’ are now in complete control of the Republican Party, while the old ‘Bush-era establishment’ crowd is on the sidelines,” Farrar said. “If Mr. Cornyn retains the Republican nomination, it may mean that Republican primary voters are more concerned about the party’s chances in November.”
Eshbaugh-Soha said the focus will be on voters who did not choose Cornyn or Paxton in the March primary. Some may vote with the caveat that whoever wins the nomination will face Democrat James Talarico, a state lawmaker whose support is growing across the country.
“Will they actively support a candidate with more conservative credentials, or will they vote strategically, believing that Mr. Cornyn has a better chance of defeating Talarico in November because he has less personal and political stakes?” he says.
Contributor: Zachary Schermele
