Texas Asian American voters could decide battleground races as Bo French scandal erupts: Poll

Asian American voters have the potential to swing high-stakes statewide races in Texas, according to new research released Thursday.According to a new survey from the Asian Texans for Justice, Asian American voters in the Lone Star State have shifted toward the Republican Party since the 2022 midterm elections. The GOP gained an 11.4-point advantage among Asian American voters between 2022 and 2026, while Democrats declined 10.8 points in the same time period.Yet no political party holds a majority of the Asian vote in Texas. Nearly 40% identify with the GOP, 31.2% identifies with Democrats, and nearly 29% identify as independent, according to the survey. The polling data comes on the heels of a scandal involving a Republican statewide candidate targeting Asian American college students, which could make winning their votes harder for the GOP.Bo French, the Republican candidate for state railroad commission, ignited a fierce debate on race after posting a disparaging comment about Asian American students attending a football game at the University of Texas. Several Republican lawmakers denounced French’s comments, including Gov. Greg Abbott (R-TX) and outgoing Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX).Some worried the post could damage the party’s brand, especially as Republicans stare down a likely difficult midterm cycle.“Are other Republican elected officials going to condemn the intolerance and racism, or look the other way while it becomes normalized?” Cornyn wrote on X. “This is how great political parties self-destruct. Sad.”The Lone Star State is home to a consequential Senate battle between state Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) and Democrat James Talarico that will help determine control of the upper chamber. This is the Republican nominee for statewide office. Are other Republican elected officials going to condemn the intolerance and racism, or look the other way while it becomes normalized. This is how great political parties self-destruct. Sad. https://t.co/TO1dTXKd6G— Senator John Cornyn (@JohnCornyn) September 13, 2026 Asian American voters are the fastest-growing voting bloc in the nation, according to the Pew Research Center. The demographic is also one of the fastest-growing in the Lone Star State. Between 2020 and 2025, Asian Americans accounted for more than 19% of the growth in Texas.Nabila Mansoor, executive director of Asian Texans for Justice, told the Washington Examiner she doesn’t “think any party is doing enough” to win over Asian American voters.“It’s really hard to be taken seriously sometimes as a community, and so there is a lot more work that needs to be done,” Mansoor said. “Meeting our community where they’re at is not easy.… We are over 50 ethnicities. We speak over 70 languages.”Although Asian American voters favored former Vice President Kamala Harris over President Donald Trump in 2024, 57%-40%, Trump improved his share of their vote compared to 2020. In Trump’s 2020 presidential campaign against eventual winner Joe Biden, he won 30% of the Asian American vote.But the survey showed that just two years after the presidential race, Asian American and Pacific Islanders voters are souring on the president. Nearly 39% of Asian American voters approved of Trump, compared with nearly 56% of white voters, 40.3% of Hispanic voters, and 19% of African American voters.Inflation and cost of living are the top issues for them at 45.3%, followed by healthcare access and costs at nearly 42%, and jobs and the economy at 39%.Anxiety among Texas Republicans has risen over Indian Americans and H1-B visas for skilled workers. Abbott proposed banning public schools from sponsoring foreign workers on H-1 B visas last month.Other Texas Republicans, such as Sen. Ted Cruz, have railed against sharia law as the Muslim and Asian population in the Lone Star State has increased. At the Republican National Committee midterm convention in Dallas last week, Cruz declared that “sharia law has no place in America.”Abbott also signed a bill into law last year restricting foreigners from China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea from purchasing real estate in Texas.The combination of these developments, combined with French’s post, could prove politically costly with the fast-growing voting bloc.“At a time when the Republicans and really any political party should be reaching out to these folks … they are reaching out to them and making them feel like they don’t belong, which is reflected exactly in our poll, where it says only one in three Asian Texans already feel well represented in government,” said Mansoor. “And so incidents like that Bo French one go towards exactly that.”Republican operatives said that French’s comments give Republicans a chance to show Asian American voters they “support their growth and their efforts,” according to Jeff Burton, a GOP strategist and founding partner at Maven Advocacy based in Austin.“I would absolutely suggest to every Republican candidate to show up in person,” added Burton. “It’s not enough just to make comments on social media. Asian Americans … they’re a broad swath of different populations, just like Hispanics and blacks, they tend to be more of a tight-knit community, and showing up matters. And that’s why I suggest every Republican, whether it’s on this issue or any issue, show up and prove it. Don’t just say it in the newspaper or online.”The divisive remarks from French bled into the Senate race, where Talarico commended Cornyn and called out Paxton. Talarico, who’s locked in a tight contest with Paxton, has also made moves to reach out to Asian voters in his Senate campaign.He recently launched the “AAPI Texans for Talarico” WhatsApp Channel to Asian American voters in the state and called on Paxton to “condemn this blatant racism or will you cower to extremists?”Paxton later responded on social media, denouncing French’s comments before pivoting to attacking Talarico.“I condemn racism in all its forms, including James Talarico saying white men are America’s top terror threat and that he prays to overcome his own ‘whiteness,’ whatever that means,” he wrote on X. “Only one person in this race has a history of dividing Texans by race, and it’s James Talarico. I will continue to focus on uniting our State and bringing together the broadest possible coalition to fight for Texas, our values, and our families.” I condemn racism in all its forms, including James Talarico saying white men are America's top terror threat and that he prays to overcome his own 'whiteness,' whatever that means. Only one person in this race has a history of dividing Texans by race, and it’s James Talarico. I… https://t.co/24Tlp3Rd5U— Attorney General Ken Paxton (@KenPaxtonTX) September 13, 2026 IN FOCUS: THE GOP’S TENT IS TOO BIG IF BO FRENCH FITS UNDER ITWith less than 60 days before Election Day, both parties still have much political advocacy to do to increase the turnout of Texas Asian American voters.“We saw that our community is motivated to vote, but it is softer than other groups this cycle,” said Asian Texans for Justice’s Mansoor. “It’s softer than the black community. It’s softer than the Latino community, and what does that mean? That either deepens disengagement, or it could activate turnout and increase turnout because the community understands that they are being unfairly targeted.”