In today's Texas Senate primary election, Republicans are measuring the potency of Trump’s Make America Great Again movement against old-guard conservatism. Democrats, meanwhile, face a choice between two progressive “powerhouses” with different theories of how to fight – and how to win – in the Trump era.
The fiercely competitive races have left Democrats unusually hopeful about their chances in a state that hasn’t elected a Democrat statewide since 1994, while Republicans fret they could lose a seat once viewed as safely red.
Early voting has soared, particularly on the Democratic side, while political ad spending has surpassed $122m, according to data from AdImpact, making it the most expensive Senate primary on record.
The vast majority of the money is being spent to help four-term incumbent John #Cornyn fend off a challenge from Ken #Paxton, the state’s scandal-plagued attorney general and a conservative culture warrior.
Cornyn, 74, has emphasized his seniority and record, which he has defended as closely aligned with the president. By contrast, Paxton, 64, has presented himself as Maga’s vanguard in Texas, willing to battle both Democrats and Republicans.
On the Democratic side, state representative James #Talarico has crisscrossed the deep-red counties that voted for Trump, preaching a “politics of love” that roots progressive policy in the teachings of his Christian faith. The 36-year-old former middle school teacher and current seminary student argues that the central divide in American politics is “not left v right” but “top v bottom” and says Democrats can rebuild trust in rural and suburban communities without abandoning their core values.
He faces Congresswoman Jasmine #Crockett, a firebrand progressive whose unsparing attacks on Trump and Republicans have earned her a starring role in the resistance movement to his second term. Crockett, 44, entered the race in December, just before the filing deadline, embracing a different political playbook. Casting herself as a “proven fighter” who “drives the president crazy”, Crockett contends that high turnout among young voters and voters of color – not ideological moderation – is the key to winning statewide.
The Democratic contest underlines a central debate that has animated the party since Trump’ s 2016 victory: whether they win by “doubling down” on their base and its fury with Trump’s presidency, or by courting independents and swing voters disenchanted with partisanship and the political status quo.
Tuesday’s election will hardly be the final word, but as polls open in the nation’s second-largest state, Democrats will be monitoring the political currents closely, as they target Republican-held seats in other states, from Alaska to Maine.
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/mar/03/texas-primaries-democrats-republicans-trump?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other
