A top ally of Donald Trump said he won’t step aside in a bitterly contested U.S. Senate race—even if the president tries to pick someone else.
Trump said he plans to endorse a candidate “soon” in the Republican runoff in Texas between incumbent John Cornyn and his primary challenger, state Attorney General Ken Paxton, adding that whoever he does not back should drop out so the GOP can avoid a prolonged fight ahead of the general election.
He wrote on Truth Social Wednesday saying that the expensive and at times nasty race, “cannot, for the good of the Party, and our Country, itself, be allowed to go on any longer. IT MUST STOP NOW!”
“I will be making my Endorsement soon, and will be asking the candidate that I don’t Endorse to IMMEDIATELY DROP OUT OF THE RACE!” he added. “We must win in November!!!”
But Paxton said he will stay in the race no matter who Trump endorses, pushing back against Trump’s demand that the candidate he does not back should drop out.
The remark came during an appearance on Real America’s Voice, where the host picked up on Trump’s call for one candidate in the Texas contest to bow out.
“President Trump said he’s going to make an endorsement—whoever he doesn’t endorse should drop out,” the host said. “I have a funny feeling you don’t drop out under any circumstance.”
“No, I’m staying in this race,” Paxton, who has long been dogged by allegations of corruption and infidelity, replied. “I owe it to the people of Texas.”
Paxton is headed to a Republican runoff against longtime senator Cornyn after the two candidates advanced from the primary. The contest sets up a high-stakes clash between the conservative state attorney general and the establishment-aligned incumbent.
Trump—whose endorsements often reshape Republican primaries—has not yet publicly backed either candidate, but Paxton appears steadfast in his position even though GOP insiders fear the runoff could be even uglier and more expensive than the first contest.
Paxton struck a defiant tone while addressing several hundred supporters gathered in a Dallas hotel ballroom, where he hosted a watch party on Wednesday.
“We just sent a message, loud and clear, to Washington,” he said. “We are not going to go quietly, and we are not going to let you buy the seat.”
It comes after state Rep. James Talarico defeated congresswoman Jasmine Crockett in a costly and fiercely fought Democratic primary for Cornyn’s seat, reviving hopes within the party of a major upset in the November midterms.
This has increased anxiety in GOP ranks, with Republicans immediately attacking 36-year-old Talarico as a far-left extremist. Insiders privately consider the Christian progressive a stronger general election candidate than Trump foe Crockett.
An overly competitive race in Texas could force operatives to rethink the pre-determined Senate map, consuming resources that the party needs in more competitive states.
Republican leaders in D.C. insist that Cornyn has the best shot, especially after seeing off Paxton in Tuesday’s primary. However, there was no clear winner, buoying Paxton’s camp. Cornyn got 41.9 percent of the votes, while Paxton got 40.7 percent. The runoff is required because no candidate got over 50 percent.
The pro-Paxton Lone Star PAC wrote in a memo, saying that “the D.C. establishment has done its job” by “rallying around its wounded incumbent, opening the fundraising spigot, and flooding the airwaves,” all to no tangible avail.
“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,” Cornyn responded.
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