April 9 (UPI) — Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced his bid to challenge current Sen. John Cornyn in the state’s 2026 Republican primary election.
“It’s definitely time for a change in Texas,” Paxton, 62, said Tuesday night on a Fox News show in a formal campaign announcement.
“We have another great U.S. senator, Ted Cruz, and it’s time we have another great senator that will actually stand up and fight for Republican values, fight for the values of the people of Texas and also support Trump,” Paxton added.
Recent polling data suggests Paxton — a conservative with a hardline position on issues such as the death penalty, gender-affirming care and the rights of voters — stands a good chance of ousting the state’s 24-year-long senior senator.
Cornyn’s campaign struck back.
“Ken Paxton is a fraud,” the campaign said as it pointed out Paxton’s criminal credentials, professional misconduct and other issues.
“It’s hard to think of the things that he’s done good for Texas or for the country,” Paxton said Tuesday of his new opponent Cornyn. “I can certainly point to many things like his gun restrictions, his lack of wanting to fund a border wall and disagreeing with President Trump on that, and even opposing President Trump’s election in 2016 and the most recent election.”
In 2023, Paxton was impeached by the Republican-controlled Texas House of Representatives on bribery and corruption charges, but he pleaded not guilty to the 16 counts related to the alleged abuse of the office of Texas attorney general.
“(Paxton) says his impeachment trial was a sham but he didn’t contest the fact in legal filings, which will cost the state millions,” Cornyn, 73, added.
Last year, Cornyn tossed his name in the race to be the Senate’s GOP leader to replace the retiring Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., in a GOP conference election won by Sen. John Thune, R-S.D.
Meanwhile, former U.S. Rep. Colin Allred, who lost last year’s election to Cruz, is “seriously considering” a run for the Democratic Senate nomination in Texas for a seat Democrats haven’t won since 1988.
