Tipsheet

Ken Paxton Just Made a Huge Offer in the Texas Senate Primary Campaign Ahead of Trump Endorsement

Jeff Charles
Jeff Charles  |  March 05, 2026 1:45 PM

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who is running against Sen. John Cornyn in the primary race, said he would only consider dropping out of the race if his opponent commits to backing the SAVE Act. Previously, he suggested that he would remain in the campaign even if President Donald Trump backs Cornyn.

In a post on X, Paxton said the SAVE Act "is the most important bill the U.S. Senate could ever pass, and I'm committed to helping President Trump get it done."

He then declared he "would consider dropping out of this race if Senate Leadership agrees to lift the filibuster and passes the SAVE America Act."

Then he savaged Cornyn as "a coward who has refused to support abolishing the filibuster to pass this bill" and that "Fake News reporters and the establishment are trying to destroy me with misinformation."

The Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act is a GOP-backed bill that would require voters to show official documents proving U.S. citizenship when they register to vote in federal elections. These can include a passport or birth certificate. It would also strengthen photo ID requirements. The House has already passed the measure.

Cornyn is a strong supporter of the SAVE Act. “It is ridiculous that we need to pass a bill to ensure that Americans alone are the ones voting in our federal elections, but thanks to Joe Biden’s reckless open-border policies and Democrat-run sanctuary cities, this is the reality we live in,” he said in a statement.

However, the senator has opposed eliminating the filibuster since 2017. However, he did signal that he is open to making limited changes or carve-outs for spending and funding bills so that a smaller minority cannot shut down the government, which means he could be amenable to a limited action on the filibuster to pass the SAVE Act.

During a Wednesday appearance on Real America’s Voice, Paxton said he “spent a year of my life campaigning against John Cornyn because John has not represented the people of Texas well.”

“He sided with Joe Biden on Second Amendment restriction, he sided with Joe Biden on bringing Afghan refugees to settle here without vetting them…he’s been against Trump in both of his elections, said he should run last time,” Paxton said.

The attorney general declared that he would remain in the race regardless of who Trump endorses.

Trump announced on Wednesday that he will endorse a candidate in the Texas Republican Senate primary after neither contender won more than 50 percent of the vote in Tuesday’s election, which means the race is headed into a runoff election on May 26.

In a post on Truth Social, Trump argued that the primary race cannot “be allowed to go on any longer” and that “Both John and Ken ran great races, but not good enough.” He called on the person who does not receive his endorsement to drop out and allow the nominee to focus on the general election.

Since then, Republican leadership has been lobbying Trump to back Cornyn, believing he has the best chance to defeat Democratic challenger state Rep. James Talarico, who defeated U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett (TX-30).

Trump responded to Paxton’s comments in an interview with Politico by suggesting it may push him to endorse Cornyn after all.

President Donald Trump appears to be leaning toward endorsing Sen. John Cornyn in the Texas GOP Senate primary, issuing a stark warning to state Attorney General Ken Paxton in an interview with POLITICO.

The president, in a brief phone conversation Thursday morning, said an endorsement will be “made pretty soon” before addressing Paxton, who recently said he would not drop out of the race even if Trump endorses Cornyn.

“Well, that’s bad for him to say,” Trump said. “That is bad for him. So maybe, maybe that leads me to go the other direction.”

Trump had previously stated he would ask the candidate he does not endorse to step aside.

There has not yet been polling regarding the Cornyn/Paxton matchup since Tuesday’s election. But an Emerson College Polling survey published on February 28 showed Cornyn leading Talarico by three points while Paxton was tied with him.