President Donald Trump could shape the nasty GOP runoff between John Cornyn and Ken Paxton, Jasmine Crockett’s star power fades in loss to James Talarico and Dallas voting chaos erupts.
By Gromer Jeffers Jr.
Political writer
One down. Another still raging.
The Texas Senate primary delivered drama and a measure of mayhem Tuesday night, as Democrats nominated state Rep. James Talarico over U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett.
On the Republican side, longtime incumbent John Cornyn and Attorney General Ken Paxton were forced into a May runoff that promises to be one of the most bruising in Texas political history.
Meanwhile, a GOP-driven change to how primaries were conducted in Dallas County triggered widespread confusion, with hundreds of voters turned away from familiar polling locations and redirected to party-specific precinct sites.
Several congressional and statewide races are also headed into overtime.
Here are five election night takeaways.
Will President Donald Trump endorse?
The Cornyn-Paxton runoff could hinge on President Donald Trump, who withheld a formal endorsement during the first round. Both candidates will now try to make their case as the May 26 runoff campaign takes shape.
Cornyn strengthened his argument by finishing first and by presenting himself as the safer choice in November. His campaign says nominating Paxton could force Republicans to spend millions defending a seat that should otherwise be secure.
Paxton will counter that Texas runoffs often reward insurgents. His allies point to the 2012 GOP Senate race, when Ted Cruz, then a former Texas solicitor general backed by Tea Party activists, came from behind in the runoff to defeat Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst.
Cornyn’s pitch to Trump will be simple: Why gamble?
Think the first round was nasty? Stay tuned.
Cornyn and his allies spent tens of millions of dollars attacking Paxton’s character and fitness to be the GOP nominee. Cornyn has signaled there’s more to come, including fresh revelations about Paxton’s record and conduct.
Paxton will continue portraying Cornyn as a Republican in name only (RINO), a line of attack that can resonate in a low-turnout contest.
The spending in the race already topped $125 million, making it the most expensive Senate primary in U.S. history. The runoff will push that figure even higher.
And Wesley Hunt, the Houston congressman who finished third, could still play a role if he weighs in with an endorsement or mobilizes his supporters.
Crockett’s star falls
Crockett entered the race with enormous buzz. In many ways, her first day may have been her strongest.
From there, Talarico ran the steadier campaign, aided by strong fundraising, a deeper ground operation and a disciplined message about electability.
Crockett filed on the final day of the candidate filing period, leaving her less than three months to organize a statewide effort.
She also appeared to underestimate Talarico’s appeal, particularly his ability to consolidate moderate Democrats and win decisively among Latino voters.
Even so, the outcome was not inevitable.
Polls showed Crockett with high favorability among Democratic voters, suggesting the race could have been closer had her campaign connected more consistently with voters across the state.
Will Democrats unite?
The candidates are already emphasizing unity, though healing divisions from the primary may take time.
“Texas is primed to turn blue and we must remain united because this is bigger than any one person,” Crockett said Wednesday morning after calling Talarico.
Mikala Compton / AP
Though Crockett could help bridge that divide, the burden will fall largely on Talarico to build relationships with Black voters across the state.
There’s resentment among Crockett supporters who bristled at the “electability” argument deployed against her, which some viewed as dismissive of an accomplished Black woman.
Democrats desperate to end their decades-long statewide losing streak know they will need a united coalition if they hope to defeat Cornyn or Paxton in November.
Polling place chaos
Election Day in Dallas County descended into confusion after Republicans opted to run a separate party primary rather than participate in the county’s long-standing joint vote center system.
The change meant some locations served only Democrats or only Republicans, a shift that caught many voters off guard.
Hundreds of residents showed up at familiar vote centers only to learn they were at the wrong party’s polling location and had to travel to another site assigned to their precinct.
Voting rights groups say the episode highlights the risk of confusion when counties abandon shared vote centers.
And the night could have been even more chaotic. Local Republicans had briefly floated the idea of hand-counting ballots, a proposal election officials warned would have delayed results well into the next day.
Instead, the confusion at the polls will likely spark the next fight, not just over this election but over how Texans vote in the ones to come.
The Howard University graduate and Chicago native has covered four presidential campaigns and written extensively about local, state and national politics. Before The News, he was a reporter at The Kansas City Star and The Chicago Defender. You can catch Gromer every Sunday at 8:30 a.m. on NBC 5’s Lone Star Politics.
