Record turnout in 2026 Texas primaries, several runoff races set for May

President Donald Trump said Wednesday he soon will endorse a Republican candidate in the Texas Senate race, warning that the divisive contest "cannot, for the good of the Party, and our Country, itself, be allowed to go on any longer."

"IT MUST STOP NOW!" Trump wrote on social media after four-term Sen. John Cornyn and state Attorney General Ken Paxton advanced on Tuesday to a May 26 runoff for the nomination. "I will be making my Endorsement soon, and will be asking the candidate that I don't Endorse to immediately DROP OUT OF THE RACE! Is that fair? We must win in November!!!"

Republicans are sweating that runoff election because the 83-day sprint takes place as operatives in both major political parties acknowledge that Democrats have an unusually solid chance of winning a Senate seat in Texas this year, something that has not happened in nearly four decades.

Democrats nominated state Rep. James Talarico. Republicans immediately attacked him as a far-left extremist even though they privately consider the 36-year-old Christian progressive to be a stronger general election candidate than his primary opponent, Rep. Jasmine Crockett.

The Senate contest is playing out as the Republican president fights to maintain control of Congress for his final two years in the White House. While Republicans are more confident about keeping their majority in the Senate than in the House, a competitive race in Texas could scramble the map or at least consume resources that the party needs in more competitive states such as North Carolina, Maine, Ohio, and Alaska.

Cornyn and his allies spent nearly $70 million to survive the first round of the primary. He was slightly ahead of Paxton with more votes still being counted on Wednesday. Republicans fear the runoff could be even uglier and more expensive.

"It's judgment day for Ken Paxton," Cornyn said on election night.

Texas Reps. Christian Menefee and Al Green have advanced to a runoff in a Democratic primary for U.S. House.

Neither candidate won enough of the vote in the Houston-area district to win the nomination outright, forcing a May 26 runoff.

The unusual primary between two sitting Democratic congressmen was the result of redrawn voting maps that President Donald Trump ordered ahead of November's midterm elections. Green, 78, switched to run in the newly redrawn 18th Congressional District after his current district was redrawn to favor Republicans.

Menefee, 37, was sworn in to Congress only a month ago after winning a special election to fill the remaining term of Rep. Sylvester Turner, who died last year. For some Houston voters, Tuesday's primary was their third time casting ballots in a congressional race in four months, sowing confusion.

Green, who was first elected to the U.S. House in 2004, is one of his party's most outspoken Trump critics and filed articles of impeachment during the president's first term.

A rule change for primary voting in two Texas counties led to mass voter confusion that eventually led to a state supreme court ruling, threats of more legal action, and the potential that an untold number of voters could find themselves disenfranchised.

An unknown number of voters in the counties were turned away Tuesday and directed to different precincts after the recent change in how the primary is conducted.

Voters had been allowed to cast their ballots anywhere in their county since 2019. But for Tuesday's primary, the Republican parties in Dallas and Williamson counties opted against countywide voting.

That meant voters could cast ballots only at their assigned precinct, but many weren't aware of the change.

SEE FULL REPORT: Change in primary voting rules leads to confusion in 2 Texas counties as voters are turned away

With nearly 92% of the votes tallied, Jasmine Crockett conceded the Democratic primary in the Texas Senate race to James Talarico.

The congresswoman called on the party to unify behind the state representative, who clinched the nomination overnight.

"Texas is primed to turn blue, and we must remain united because this is bigger than any one person," Crockett said in a statement. "This is about the future of all 30 million Texans and getting America back on track."

Crockett's campaign had previously suggested that she would file a lawsuit over voting challenges in the primary. A spokesperson did not immediately respond to a question about those plans.

Talarico will face the winner of the Republican runoff, either Sen. John Cornyn or state Attorney General Ken Paxton.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.