Republicans brace for money problems in Texas after Ken Paxton's win [View all]
Source: NBC News
May 27, 2026, 9:13 PM EDT
President Donald Trump may be celebrating that Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton won Tuesday’s Senate primary, but some Republicans now worry that they have a Texas-sized problem on their hands.
Paxton, with Trump’s endorsement, handily defeated four-term Sen. John Cornyn in the runoff. Democrats largely viewed Paxton as the weaker candidate because of his many controversies. But his fundraising struggles are also raising alarm bells among Republicans. “Economically, it’s a disaster. Texas is extremely expensive,” said a GOP consultant working on Senate races, who was granted anonymity to speak candidly about party resources.
So far, Paxton’s fundraising has paled in comparison with that of the Democratic nominee, state Rep. James Talarico, who has raised more than $40 million — though he spent most of it in a hotly contested primary. But Talarico is expected to raise millions more; he pulled in $600,000 in just two hours following Paxton’s win, according to Talarico’s campaign. The haul was first reported by Politico.
Paxton has raised $7.6 million, and his campaign had $2.3 million left to spend as of May 6. The Paxton campaign did not respond to a request for comment.
Read more: https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2026-election/republicans-money-problems-texas-ken-paxton-win-rcna347185
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