Ken Paxton and James Talarico made final campaign stops Saturday in Texas's tossup U.S. Senate race.
$150 million-plus from Elon Musk has backed Paxton's campaign effort. Paxton beat Sen. John Cornyn in the GOP primary with Trump's help. Paxton called it the hardest of his 20 campaigns. Paxton appeared to scrap a planned final rally at the Alamo. Why it matters: A Republican-held seat in Texas is in play. Control of the Senate could turn on races like this one.
Talarico framed the race as David versus Goliath. He said, "The people of Texas are my slingshot." Paxton said, "If we lose Texas, we lose America," and urged Republicans to turn out.
The story so far 47 steps · since Oct 7 Oct 7 1 smaller step Oct 9 Polls and Forecasts Point to Democratic Midterm Lead 73 sources Oct 10–13 6 smaller steps Oct 132:17 PM Midterm Polling Error Debated as Republicans Hope for Miss 30 sources Oct 13–18 13 smaller steps Oct 187:39 AM Midterm Polls Debated as Democrats' Support Questioned 59 sources Oct 19–22 9 smaller steps Oct 23 Democrats Poised to Retake House in Midterms 66 sources Oct 24–30 13 smaller steps Oct 31 Paxton, Talarico Make Final Push for Texas Senate You are here Latest
How 15 sources split on this story Bias Ownership
Strong Left Left Lean Left Center Lean Right Right Strong Right
Political Bias
Coverage by lean % of 15 sources
27% 40% 33%
15 sources · 19 articles · 40% Center coverage
Where they split: The coverage divides over whether the race is mainly about Paxton's record and Musk's money, or about Talarico's shifting positions.
Center coverage, 6 sources: The center sees a tossup race that measures voter frustration with Trump and his loyalists.
Left coverage, 4 sources: The left sees signs of trouble in Paxton's campaign, focusing on his apparently scrapped Alamo finale.
Right coverage, 5 sources: The right sees a must-win turnout fight against a candidate it says has reversed his positions, along with an election-integrity push.
What’s next: Voters decide the race Nov. 3. Early voting nationally was nearing 50 million ballots.
Paxton's office announced arrests of convicted felons accused of voting illegally. He said his election unit is investigating more reports. Why did Paxton appear to cancel his final Alamo rally? Will Republican turnout match the early-voting enthusiasm Paxton credits to Democrats? 
