Austin, Texas - Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico shared some fighting words after Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton won the state's Republican primary runoff on Tuesday.
"The most corrupt politician in America just became the Republican nominee for the United States Senate," Talarico said in a video message on social media after Paxton's win.
The Texas state representative pointed to accusations of bribery and abuse of office Paxton has faced as attorney general. He was impeached on corruption charges by the Texas House in 2023 before being acquitted in the Senate.
"That kind of corruption is the rot at the core of this broken system. It's why we can't afford anything. It's why we can't get ahead no matter how hard we work," Talarico said.
"For 50 years, mega donors and their puppet politicians like Ken Paxton have stolen from us with their lies, their bailouts, and their billionaire tax breaks."
"Ken Paxton has gotten away with it. They've all gotten away with it. But that ends this year, in this state, in this race."
Talarico invites Cornyn supporters to join his campaign
Talarico became Texas' Democratic nominee for US Senate with a decisive victory over Representative Jasmine Crockett in March.
The GOP primary race went to a runoff between Paxton and incumbent Senator John Cornyn.
Paxton managed to come out on top on Tuesday after scoring a late endorsement from President Donald Trump.
"Tonight, we've come up short in this primary runoff," Cornyn said in a concession speech. "I've always supported the Republican ticket, and I intend to do so again in this general election."
In a post on X, Talarico thanked Cornyn, saying, "We don’t agree on everything, but we both still believe in public service."
The Texas Democrat then invited Cornyn's supporters to join his campaign.
Talarico and Paxton will face off in the general election on November 3, 2026.