Talarico Wins Texas Democratic Senate Nomination; Cornyn and Paxton Head to May Runoff

In Austin, before the race was even called, James Talarico told a roomful of supporters that his campaign was about more than winning an election. It was, he said, an effort to fundamentally change politics, and it was working. By the end of Tuesday night, the state representative had beaten Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett in an expensive and bitterly contested Democratic primary for the U.S. Senate in Texas.

Talarico's victory sets up a general election in a state where no Democrat has won statewide in more than 30 years, and where Democrats have not won a Senate seat since 1988. Texas backed Donald Trump by almost 14 percentage points in 2024. Both Democrats had argued they were the stronger candidate for that terrain. Talarico, a seminarian who often cites the Bible, held rallies across the state, including in heavily Republican areas. Crockett built a national profile on sharp attacks against Republicans and focused on turning out Black voters in the Dallas and Houston areas. Talarico outspent her on television by more than four to one as of late February, and he got a lift last month when CBS declined to air his interview with Stephen Colbert. Colbert said the network pulled it for fear of angering Trump's FCC. After his win, Talarico declared, "We're about to take back Texas."

Crockett's night ended on a different note. Her campaign said she planned to sue over voting problems in Dallas County, her home base, and she spoke only briefly to warn that people had been disenfranchised. Voting hours were extended in Dallas County and in Williamson County, outside Austin, after voters said they were turned away and sent to other precincts under new primary rules. Paxton's office challenged the extension, and the state Supreme Court ruled that ballots cast by anyone not in line by 7 p.m. must be separated from the rest. It was unclear how that would be carried out or how many eligible ballots remained uncounted in Dallas County. In Harris County, which includes Houston, a spokesperson said voters were still at 20 centers as of 10 p.m.

On the Republican side, no one reached the 50% needed to avoid a runoff. Sen. John Cornyn, seeking a fifth term, and Attorney General Ken Paxton will meet again on May 26. Rep. Wesley Hunt finished a distant third and conceded, though his presence in the race made an outright win harder for anyone. All three candidates ran on their ties to Trump, who has not endorsed, so Cornyn and Paxton now compete for his favor. Cornyn hopes to avoid becoming the first Republican senator in Texas history to seek reelection and not be renominated.

Cornyn skipped an election night party and spoke to reporters in Austin, arguing that a Paxton win would leave "a dead weight at the top of the ticket for Republicans." He called Paxton a flawed, self-centered and shameless candidate who risked everything he had spent decades building. His cool relationship with Trump is part of what made him vulnerable. He and allied groups spent at least $64 million on television advertising alone since July to steady his support.

Paxton, speaking to supporters in Dallas, said he felt the way he did on a recent trip to Mar-a-Lago, and added, "Texas is not for sale." He began campaigning in earnest only last month and has drawn national headlines for suing over Democratic initiatives. He remains popular despite a 2023 impeachment trial on corruption charges, which ended in acquittal, and accusations of marital infidelity by his wife. Senate Republican leaders back Cornyn, worrying that Paxton would be harder to defend in November and would demand spending better used elsewhere.

The night's other races were shaped by congressional maps that Republican lawmakers, urged on by Trump, redrew to elect more Republicans. Rep. Dan Crenshaw lost his primary to state Rep. Steve Toth, who was endorsed by Sen. Ted Cruz. Rep. Tony Gonzales, considered vulnerable after an alleged affair with a staffer who killed herself, goes to a runoff with gun manufacturer and YouTube figure Brandon Herrera in a district that includes Uvalde. Former Rep. Mayra Flores lost to Trump-endorsed lawyer Eric Flores for the right to face Democratic Rep. Vicente Gonzalez. Former baseball star Mark Teixeira won the Republican nomination to succeed Chip Roy, who advanced to a runoff against Mayes Middleton for attorney general. Latin Grammy winner Bobby Pulido won the Democratic nomination to face Rep. Monica De La Cruz. Gov. Greg Abbott won his primary and will face state Rep. Gina Hinojosa.

What to watch now: Crockett's promised legal action over Dallas County, the handling of the segregated ballots, and whether Trump picks a side before May 26.