{"id":134,"date":"2026-05-15T23:06:19","date_gmt":"2026-05-15T23:06:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usrelocationpost.com\/?p=134"},"modified":"2026-05-15T23:06:19","modified_gmt":"2026-05-15T23:06:19","slug":"abbott-sidesteps-endorsing-in-paxton-cornyn-senate-race-what-polls-show","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usrelocationpost.com\/?p=134","title":{"rendered":"Abbott Sidesteps Endorsing in Paxton, Cornyn Senate Race: What Polls Show"},"content":{"rendered":"

Texas Governor Greg Abbott, a Republican, will not be endorsing a candidate in the high-stakes GOP Senate runoff election in the Lone Star State, The Dallas Morning News <\/em>reported on Thursday.<\/p>

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\u201cI haven\u2019t made one yet, and I\u2019m not going to make one,\u201d Abbott said, according to the outlet, following a news conference about criminal justice. \u201cI\u2019ve worked with both of them very closely.\u201d<\/p>

The race advanced to a Republican runoff after neither incumbent Senator John Cornyn nor Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton won a majority in March, setting up a nationally watched intraparty contest that could signal the GOP\u2019s direction in a critical Sun Belt state while determining who faces Democratic nominee James Talarico in November.<\/p>

Newsweek <\/em>reached out to both campaigns for comment via email on Friday.<\/p>

President Donald Trump\u2019s potential endorsement also looms over the race, as the president has not formally backed a candidate.<\/p>

What To Know <\/h2>

Ren\u00e9e D Cross, Senior Executive Director & Researcher at University of Houston’s Hobby School of Public Affairs, told Newsweek<\/em> on Friday, “Governor Abbott has a very high favorability rating among likely Republican primary voters at 75% so his endorsement could make a difference in the very small number of undecided voters.”<\/p>

Cross continued, “However when the race appears to be so close, endorsements can make a difference with voters on the fence. Considering that Cornyn is described as a RINO by some Republicans, an endorsement by Abbott \u2014 someone that Republican voters view very favorably \u2014 could help Cornyn’s numbers. Of course an Abbott endorsement could help Paxton as well but not to the same degree in my opinion since Paxton already has support among the most conservative Republican voters.”<\/p>

The Hobby School of Public Affairs at the University of Houston\u00a0poll\u00a0was conducted from April 28 to May 1, 2026, among 1,200 likely GOP primary runoff voters, with a margin of error of 2.83 percent.<\/p>

Other prominent Republican lawmakers in the state have also stayed away from backing a candidate, including Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick and Senator Ted Cruz, USA Today<\/em> reports. <\/p>

The Senate primary race has been noticeably icy between Cornyn and Paxton amid numerous campaign ads and posts to social media. Cornyn has said Paxton is plagued with scandals and Paxton has gone after Cornyn over immigration and says he helps Democrats. <\/p>

What Polls Show<\/h2>

The runoff election is scheduled for May 26.<\/p>

A Texas Public Opinion Research poll conducted from April 17 to April 20 among 1,018 likely voters showed Talarico besting both Paxton and Cornyn in potential head-to-head races. Talarico leads Cornyn 44 to 41 percent, and the Democratic nominee also leads Paxton 46 percent to 41 percent\u00a0The poll has a margin of error of 3.3 percent.<\/p>

A poll from co\/efficient last month\u00a0shows Paxton is 1 point behind Cornyn, with 43 percent versus 44 percent. The poll shows that 13 percent are undecided. In a similar breakdown, 43 percent of women support Paxton versus 44 percent for Cornyn. The tight figures are reversed with men, as 44 percent choose Paxton versus 43 percent siding with Cornyn.<\/p>

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Among Hispanics, Cornyn has a 10-point advantage, with 47 percent of the vote compared to Paxton’s 37 percent.<\/p>

The poll was taken from April 11 to April 14 among 1,143 likely Republican primary voters and has a 3.07 percent margin of error.<\/p>

Meanwhile,\u00a0prediction market site\u00a0Polymarket shows\u00a0that\u00a0Paxton leads with 62 percent compared to Cornyn’s 39 percent on Friday at 5:09 p.m. ET.<\/p>

What Trump Has Said About the Race<\/h2>

While aboard Air Force One on his way back to the United States from China, Trump was asked about potentially making an endorsement in the race. <\/p>

“I’m looking at it very strongly. I like them both. I’ll tell you what I do think, I think the Democrats have a weird, a weird candidate,” Trump said in part. He later called Talarico a “pathetic candidate, especially for Texas” and “bad news.”<\/p>

Earlier this month,\u00a0Trump was asked\u00a0why he has not backed either Paxton or Cornyn in the Lone Star State’s GOP Senate primary, responding in part, “I’ll make a decision.”<\/p>

When pressed on the timing of that decision, Trump said, “Maybe relatively soon, I like them both actually.\u201d<\/p>

What\u2019s Next<\/h2>

All eyes now turn to the May 26 runoff, where Republican voters will decide between Cornyn and Paxton in a race that could shape the GOP\u2019s direction in Texas and beyond. With Abbott and other top state Republicans staying neutral, the final stretch is likely to intensify, with both campaigns escalating attacks and turnout efforts.<\/p>

A potential endorsement from Trump remains a major wildcard, especially given how close the race appears in polling and prediction markets. Any late intervention could shift momentum in the final days.<\/p>

The winner will go on to face Talarico in November, where early polling suggests a competitive general election that could test Republican strength in a traditionally red state.<\/p>

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\"Governor<\/figure>\n<\/div>
…<\/span><\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/article>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Senate primary race has been noticeably icy between Cornyn and Paxton amid numerous campaign ads and posts to social media.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":132,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-134","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\nAbbott Sidesteps Endorsing in Paxton, Cornyn Senate Race: What Polls Show - US Relocation Post<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/usrelocationpost.com\/?p=134\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Abbott Sidesteps Endorsing in Paxton, Cornyn Senate Race: What Polls Show - US Relocation Post\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The Senate primary race has been noticeably icy between Cornyn and Paxton amid numerous campaign ads and posts to social media.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/usrelocationpost.com\/?p=134\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"US Relocation Post\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-05-15T23:06:19+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/usrelocationpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/5f534a4256b5535ff8f276f346102f62.webp\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"800\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/webp\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/usrelocationpost.com\\\/?p=134#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/usrelocationpost.com\\\/?p=134\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/usrelocationpost.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/e0d67e3b0d3c1ffefd8ff92add2033bd\"},\"headline\":\"Abbott Sidesteps Endorsing in Paxton, Cornyn Senate Race: What Polls Show\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-05-15T23:06:19+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/usrelocationpost.com\\\/?p=134\"},\"wordCount\":855,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/usrelocationpost.com\\\/?p=134#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/usrelocationpost.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/5f534a4256b5535ff8f276f346102f62.webp\",\"articleSection\":[\"News\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/usrelocationpost.com\\\/?p=134#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/usrelocationpost.com\\\/?p=134\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/usrelocationpost.com\\\/?p=134\",\"name\":\"Abbott Sidesteps Endorsing in Paxton, Cornyn Senate Race: What Polls Show - 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