Texas Governor Greg Abbott, a Republican, will not be endorsing a candidate in the high-stakes GOP Senate runoff election in the Lone Star State, The Dallas Morning News reported on Thursday.
“I haven’t made one yet, and I’m not going to make one,” Abbott said, according to the outlet, following a news conference about criminal justice. “I’ve worked with both of them very closely.”
The race advanced to a Republican runoff after neither incumbent Senator John Cornyn nor Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton won a majority in March, setting up a nationally watched intraparty contest that could signal the GOP’s direction in a critical Sun Belt state while determining who faces Democratic nominee James Talarico in November.
Newsweek reached out to both campaigns for comment via email on Friday.
President Donald Trump’s potential endorsement also looms over the race, as the president has not formally backed a candidate.
What To Know
Other prominent Republican lawmakers in the state have also stayed away from backing a candidate, including Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick and Senator Ted Cruz, USA Today reports.
The Senate primary race has been noticeably icy between Cornyn and Paxton amid numerous campaign ads and posts to social media. Cornyn has said Paxton is plagued with scandals and Paxton has gone after Cornyn over immigration and says he helps Democrats.
What Polls Show
The runoff election is scheduled for May 26.
A Texas Public Opinion Research poll conducted from April 17 to April 20 among 1,018 likely voters showed Talarico besting both Paxton and Cornyn in potential head-to-head races. Talarico leads Cornyn 44 to 41 percent, and the Democratic nominee also leads Paxton 46 percent to 41 percent. The poll has a margin of error of 3.3 percent.
A poll from co/efficient last month shows Paxton is 1 point behind Cornyn, with 43 percent versus 44 percent. The poll shows that 13 percent are undecided. In a similar breakdown, 43 percent of women support Paxton versus 44 percent for Cornyn. The tight figures are reversed with men, as 44 percent choose Paxton versus 43 percent siding with Cornyn.
Among Hispanics, Cornyn has a 10-point advantage, with 47 percent of the vote compared to Paxton’s 37 percent.
The poll was taken from April 11 to April 14 among 1,143 likely Republican primary voters and has a 3.07 percent margin of error.
Meanwhile, prediction market site Polymarket shows that Paxton leads with 62 percent compared to Cornyn’s 39 percent on Friday at 5:09 p.m. ET.
What Trump Has Said About the Race
While aboard Air Force One on his way back to the United States from China, Trump was asked about potentially making an endorsement in the race.
“I’m looking at it very strongly. I like them both. I’ll tell you what I do think, I think the Democrats have a weird, a weird candidate,” Trump said in part. He later called Talarico a “pathetic candidate, especially for Texas” and “bad news.”
Earlier this month, Trump was asked why he has not backed either Paxton or Cornyn in the Lone Star State’s GOP Senate primary, responding in part, “I’ll make a decision.”
When pressed on the timing of that decision, Trump said, “Maybe relatively soon, I like them both actually.”
What’s Next
All eyes now turn to the May 26 runoff, where Republican voters will decide between John Cornyn and Ken Paxton in a race that could shape the GOP’s direction in Texas and beyond. With Governor Greg Abbott and other top state Republicans staying neutral, the final stretch is likely to intensify, with both campaigns escalating attacks and turnout efforts.
A potential endorsement from President Donald Trump remains a major wildcard, especially given how close the race appears in polling and prediction markets. Any late intervention could shift momentum in the final days.
The winner will go on to face Democrat James Talarico in November, where early polling suggests a competitive general election that could test Republican strength in a traditionally red state.
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