Elon Musk cash, culture wars, and Trump endorsements collide in explosive Texas Senate showdown

Texas has not sent a Democrat to a statewide office since 1994, and on Tuesday the party was trying to end that 30-year losing streak in one of the midterms' marquee U.S. Senate races.The contest between Ken Paxton, the state's Republican attorney general, and James Talarico has become one of the country's most heated and expensive campaigns, and Republicans fear they could lose. The race has left the GOP scrambling to defend both a pivotal stronghold and an increasingly fragile Senate majority.Paxton's path to the nomination ran through a combative primary against incumbent Sen. John Cornyn, which he won with a late endorsement from President Donald Trump. Senate Republican leaders feared Paxton would be far more vulnerable than Cornyn because of his years of legal troubles, including accusations of corruption. The campaign has tested whether voters will tolerate the past scandals that have shadowed Paxton.Texas Attorney General and Republican candidate for the US Senate Ken Paxton (R) speaks during a midterm campaign rally with US President Donald Trump at Lubbock Memorial Civic Center (AFP/Getty)It has also tested whether Talarico's religion-infused populist message can open a path to victory for Democrats in a state that Trump easily carried two years ago. Talarico built his campaign around portraying Paxton as the face of a political system that allows billionaires to wield outsized political power while prices rise for the rest of the country. He also sought to win over moderate Republicans and independents put off by Paxton.Paxton, for his part, pinned his hopes on firing up Republican voters, who have historically outnumbered Democrats in Texas, to turn out at the polls. He campaigned with Trump several times. The president amplified Paxton's attack that Talarico is too progressive for the Lone Star State because of past statements, including that God is “nonbinary.”At the same time, voters have grown increasingly frustrated over high costs for gas, groceries, healthcare, and more, and over the war with Iran, sapping Trump's and Republicans' popularity.Ken Paxton relies on Elon Musk cash amid scandals and messy divorceElon Musk's money became the central issue in the Texas race, with the world's richest man pouring $158 million into the Senate Leadership Fund, which then gave the same amount to the Texas PAC, the largest contributor to Ken Paxton's campaign. Musk, a Texas resident, also handed $10 million to the Lone Star Liberty PAC, which supports Paxton. That spending helped blanket the state in anti-Talarico ads. The Democrat, James Talarico, responded by calling Musk's donation in his stump speech the epitome of the moneyed influence he says has corrupted politics. A person wearing a Republican Senate candidate Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton mask with a Tesla CEO Elon Musk inflatable and fake check made out to Ken Paxton from Musk (Getty)Talarico had hammered Paxton on ethical questions to win over Republican and independent voters. But he rarely maligned the Republican Party. The issue is less a question of right versus left, he often said, and more about the uber-rich versus everyone else. Paxton carried a string of legal and ethical problems into the race, including being impeached in 2023 and then acquitted by his own party on corruption accusations. A federal corruption investigation into him was closed with no charges. During the impeachment trial, there were allegations of marital infidelity, and his wife is now divorcing him on “biblical grounds.”Paxton has painted James Talarico as radical on genderKen Paxton worked to frame his Democratic opponent as too far-left for Texas, with the state's rising costs a secondary theme of his remarks. Seen in some conservative circles as a culture war pugilist, Paxton highlighted the Democrat naming his favorite drag queen in Texas. He also pointed to his opponent's earlier claim that there were six sexes. Democratic US Senate candidate from Texas James Talarico waves at the final rally of his campaign, ahead of the midterm elections, in Austin (Reuters)The Democrat, James Talarico, has worked to moderate his past statements on gender questions, calling them “cringey.” He said he opposes transgender athletes playing women's sports if it “endangers safety or fairness.” Talarico often took a pastoral approach with voters. He presented himself as an earnest listener to their concerns and pledged to salve them if elected. Culture war issues have helped propel Paxton to prominence as a state attorney general eager to use his position for partisan aims. That has included leading a failed lawsuit that sought to overturn the 2020 election after Trump claimed without evidence that it was stolen.