Exclusive: Cornyn's massive cash advantage in Texas Senate race
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Sen. John Cornyn (left) and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. Photos: Graeme Sloan/Bloomberg via Getty Images (left) and Justin Lane-Pool/Getty Images
Sen. John Cornyn has established a wide fundraising advantage over his Texas Republican primary opponent state Attorney General Ken Paxton, according to financial figures obtained by Axios.
Why it matters: Cornyn is facing a more serious primary threat than any other senator up for election next year — and will need every dollar he can get.
State of play: The four-term senator raised $3.9 million during the second quarter of 2025, spread out between his campaign and joint fundraising committee. His campaign has $8.5 million in cash on hand, his operation announced Monday.
- A pro-Cornyn super PAC previously announced raising roughly $11 million. It has not released a cash-on-hand figure.
- Paxton's campaign raised $2.9 million, while a pro-Paxton super PAC took in $1.85 million. Paxton's campaign has $2.5 million on hand, while the super PAC hasn't disclosed how much it has available.
- A more complete financial picture will become clearer on Tuesday, when campaigns and super PACs file reports with the Federal Election Commission.
The background: Polls have shown Cornyn trailing Paxton, a controversial figure in Texas politics who was impeached by the state House of Representatives on bribery and corruption charges. He was later acquitted by the state Senate.
- Republicans are concerned that a Paxton nomination could jeopardize the party's hold on the seat, with some internal GOP polling showing him trailing a Democratic candidate in the general election.
The intrigue: Cornyn and Paxton are both making aggressive appeals to the White House for President Trump's endorsement.
- But during a meeting with Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) last week, Trump aides indicated that the president would be remaining neutral in the race before seeing if Cornyn could close the polling gap.
- The meeting was first reported by Punchbowl News.
What they're saying: "We are confident that we are on track to have the necessary resources to communicate to Texas GOP primary voters about Sen. Cornyn's conservative record and provide facts about Ken Paxton's repeated mismanagement of his office, ethical failures and funding of radical left wing groups with taxpayer grants," Cornyn campaign manager Andy Hemming said in a statement.
Editor's note: This story has been updated to clarify that the $3.9 million Cornyn raised in Q2 included funds from his joint fundraising committee.
