Sen. John Cornyn Narrows The Gap With Ken Paxton In Texas GOP Primary, New Poll Shows

Senator John Cornyn reduced the gap with Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in the Republican primary for the U.S. Senate, according to a new poll.

The survey, conducted by the University of Texas' Texas Politics Project, shows Paxton leading Cornyn by 36% to 34%. Rep. Wesley Hunt was on third place with 26% of the prospective votes. If such results were to hold, Cornyn and Paxton would face off each other in a runoff on May 26. The poll surveyed 350 registered voters and has a margin of error of +/-5.2 points.

The numbers appear to be a positive development for the incumbent when compared to previous polls. One conducted by Pulse Decision Science and published earlier this month showed Paxton got 36% of the support, compared to 27% for Cornyn. Hunt got 15% and 22% of respondents said they were still undecided.

The two front-runners have been taking jabs at each other, with Cornyn recently saying that Republicans will suffer a "massacre" if Paxton wins the primary.

"If Ken Paxton is the nominee, we could well experience a massacre and the first Democrat elected since 1994 in the state of Texas," Cornyn said last week. "I know people assume that Texas is a red state, will always be a red state, but when you nominate a flawed individual with the sort of political baggage that Ken Paxton has, you are risking all that," he added.

Paxton, in contrast, said he is more likely to energize voters who may not be sure whether to go to the polls if President Donald Trump isn't on the ballot. "Ensuring that low-propensity America First voters are motivated to show up in November is critical to Republicans' success in 2026, and John Cornyn is the single worst person in Texas to accomplish that," he said earlier this month.

Paxton has also released an ad touting his relationship with Trump. "'Brave. Strong. Tremendous guy.' That's how President Trump describes me," Paxton said in a statement. "While John Cornyn was supporting the Democrat lawfare to stop President Trump and trying to derail his presidential campaigns, I have been a steadfast supporter of the President and his agenda," the state attorney general added.

"The people of Texas have a long memory, and they know all the ways that Cornyn has failed us," he continued. "There's a reason that he's spent over $70 million and is still far behind me in the polls. They know what he's selling, and they aren't buying it."