Paxton and Talarico tussle for Texas Senate seat as Trump campaigns virtually

Voters in Texas are deciding a tossup Senate contest that has turned into a gauge of public discontent with President Donald Trump and the Republicans loyal to him, PBS NewsHour reports, citing the Associated Press. On Saturday, Republican Ken Paxton, the state attorney general who survived both an indictment and an impeachment, and Democrat James Talarico, a state lawmaker, laid out final pitches. Trump backed Paxton, who beat Sen. John Cornyn in the primary. Paxton cast his opponent as too far left and a likely ally of Chuck Schumer, while Talarico accused Paxton of corruption and noted that Elon Musk has spent more than $150 million to bolster Paxton's campaign.

Elsewhere, Trump skipped in-person rallies Saturday and joined six telephone rallies, with two aimed at Florida, after earlier schedule changes that put Iowa and Kansas events back on for Sunday. Early ballots were nearing 50 million, against about 112 million cast overall in 2022.

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries campaigned in Virginia and promised vigorous oversight, including pushing out Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. House Speaker Mike Johnson, in Michigan, described the contest as a spiritual struggle.

Summarized by PolitiKool from PBS NewsHour’s reporting. Read the full story at PBS NewsHour →