Talarico wins Texas Senate Democratic nomination while Cornyn and Paxton
head to Republican runoff
[March 04, 2026]
By THOMAS BEAUMONT and WILL WEISSERT
DALLAS (AP) — State Rep. James Talarico topped Congresswoman Jasmine
Crockett in an expensive and fiercely contested Texas Senate Democratic
primary that once again has the party dreaming of a big upset in
November.
Who Talarico will face depends on a May runoff between longtime
Republican Sen. John Cornyn and MAGA favorite Ken Paxton — a race
expected to get increasingly nasty over coming months and could hinge on
whether or not President Donald Trump offers an endorsement.
Texas, along with North Carolina and Arkansas, on Tuesday kicked off
midterm elections with control of Congress at stake and against the
backdrop of the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran.
No Democrat has won a statewide race in the reliably Republican state in
over 30 years, but in a statement after his victory, Talarico proclaimed
“We're about to take back Texas.”
Crockett’s campaign said she planned to sue over voting issues in Dallas
and she spoke only briefly on Tuesday night to warn that “people have
been disenfranchised."
Republicans head to round 2
Cornyn, meanwhile, is seeking a fifth term but is facing a tough
challenge from Paxton, the state attorney general. Cornyn hopes to avoid
becoming the first Republican senator in Texas history to seek
reelection and not be renominated.
The GOP contest also featured U.S. Rep. Wesley Hunt, who finished a
distant third and conceded. But him making it a three-way race made it
tougher for any candidate to reach the 50% vote threshold needed to win
the nomination outright and avoid the May 26 runoff.
All three campaigned on their ties to Trump, who did not make an
endorsement in the race. Now both Cornyn and Paxton will again fiercely
compete to curry the president's favor.
Cornyn was facing a tough enough battle that he didn't hold an election
night party. Instead, in comments to reporters in Austin, he sought to
make the case that a runoff win by Paxton would leave “a dead weight at
the top of the ticket for Republicans.”
“I’ve worked for decades to build the Republican Party, both here in
Texas and nationally,” Cornyn said. “I refuse to allow a flawed,
self-centered and shameless candidate like Ken Paxton to risk everything
we’ve worked so hard to build over these many years.”
Addressing supporters in Dallas, Paxton made a point of saying he felt
like he had during a recent trip to Mar-a-Lago, Trump’s Florida estate.
He also proclaimed: “We proved something they’ll never understand in
Washington.”
“Texas is not for sale,” he said.
Cornyn’s cool relationship with Trump is part of what made him
vulnerable. He and allied groups spent at least $64 million in
television advertising alone since July to try stabilize his support.
Paxton, who began campaigning in earnest only last month, has made
national headlines for filing lawsuits against Democratic initiatives.
He remained popular in Texas despite a 2023 impeachment trial on
corruption charges, of which he was acquitted, and accusations of
marital infidelity by his wife.
Senate GOP leaders, who are backing Cornyn, worry that Paxton’s
liabilities would make it harder to defend the seat if he is the nominee
— and require significant spending that could be better used elsewhere.
Confusion at some polling places
In the Democratic campaign, Crockett and Talarico each argued that they
would be the stronger general election candidate in a state that backed
Trump by almost 14 percentage points in 2024.
Voting was extended in Dallas County and Williamson County, outside
Austin, after voters reported being turned away and directed to
different voting precincts because of new primary rules. Paxton’s office
later challenged a decision keeping the polls open longer, and the state
Supreme Court ruled that ballots cast by people not in line by 7 p.m.
should be separated from others.
It was not immediately clear how the court’s action would be carried out
or how many eligible ballots remained to be counted in Dallas County,
Crockett’s home base. Crockett said she would seek legal action after
voting was concluded.
[to top of second column]
|
Texas state Rep. James Talarico, D-Austin, a Democratic candidate
for the U.S. Senate, speaks at a primary election watch party
Tuesday, March 3, 2026, in Austin, Texas. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)
And in Harris County, which includes Houston, a spokesperson said
that as of 10 p.m. there were still voters at 20 centers.
Democratic race featured clash of styles
Crockett and Talarico waged a spirited race as Democrats look for
their first Senate win in Texas since 1988.
Crockett has built a national profile for zinger attacks on
Republicans and focused on turning out Black voters in the Dallas
and Houston areas. Talarico, a seminarian who often references the
Bible, held rallies across the state, including in heavily
Republican areas.
“We are not just trying to win an election," a jubilant Talarico
told supporters in Austin before the race was called. “ We are
trying to fundamentally change our politics. And it’s working.”
Dallas voter Tanu Sani said she cast her ballot for Talarico because
he “really spoke to me in the way he tries to unify.”
Tomas Sanchez, a voter in Dallas County, said he supported Crockett
because “she cares about immigrants, she cares about the American
people in a way that a lot of the Republicans have proven they
haven’t.”
Talarico outspent Crockett on television advertising by more than
four to one as of late February. He got a burst of attention — and
campaign contributions — last month from CBS' decision not to air
his interview with late-night host Stephen Colbert, who said the
network pulled the interview for fear of angering Trump's FCC.
Other key primaries
Texas’ races also featured new congressional district boundaries
that GOP lawmakers — urged on by Trump — redrew to help elect more
Republicans. The result matched several Democratic incumbents in
primary fights and set up new general election battlegrounds.
Republican former Rep. Mayra Flores was attempting a comeback but
was defeated by Eric Flores, a lawyer endorsed by Trump, for the
nomination to run against Democratic Rep. Vicente Gonzalez. Mayra
Flores made history in a 2022 special election as the first
Republican to win in the Rio Grande Valley in 150 years but lost her
bid for a full term later that year.
Incumbent Republican Rep. Dan Crenshaw lost his primary to state
Rep. Steve Toth, who was endorsed by Sen. Ted Cruz.
Another incumbent GOP incumbent, Rep. Tony Gonzales, was considered
vulnerable after an alleged affair with a staffer who killed
herself. He was challenged by gun manufacturer and YouTube
influencer Brandon Herrera, who calls himself “the AK guy.” The two
will head to a runoff in a district that includes Uvalde, site of a
deadly 2022 shooting at Robb Elementary School.
Former Major League Baseball star Mark Teixeira clinched the
Republican primary to succeed GOP Chip Roy in southwest Texas.
Democrat Bobby Pulido, a Latin Grammy winner, won his party's
primary in South Texas against physician Ada Cuellar. Pulido will
face two-term Republican Rep. Monica De La Cruz.
In suburban Dallas, Democratic Rep. Julie Johnson was facing former
Rep. Colin Allred, a former NFL linebacker and 2024 Senate nominee.
Democratic Rep. Al Green was fighting to stay in office after his
Houston-based district was drawn to lean Republican. Green, 78, ran
in a newly drawn district against Democratic Rep. Christian Menefee,
37, who won a January special election for the current 18th
District.
Republican Gov. Greg Abbott easily won his primary and will face
Democratic state Rep. Gina Hinojosa. Roy advanced to a primary
runoff with Mayes Middleton for attorney general.
___
Weissert reported from Washington. Associated Press writers Sara
Cline, John Hanna and Jamie Stengle in Dallas and Bill Barrow in
Atlanta contributed.
All contents © copyright 2026 Associated Press. All rights reserved |
