GOP 'fracture' erupting in state Republicans can't afford to lose

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton at the Republican National Midterm Convention in Dallas, Texas, U.S., September 9, 2026. REUTERS/Brian Snyder

Texas has been an ongoing source of frustration for Democrats, who haven't won a statewide race in the Lone Star State since the 1990s. But GOP strategists, in the 2026 midterms, are sounding the alarm about Texas — where some polls are showing centrist Democratic nominee James Talarico with small single-digit leads over State Attorney General Ken Paxton in a competitive U.S. Senate race and MAGA conspiracy theorist Bo French (GOP nominee for Texas railroad commissioner) is so extreme that veteran GOP strategist Karl Rove said he will vote for French's Democratic opponent, Jon Rosenthal. And according to the New York Times' Lauren McGaughy, a "fracture" among Texas Republicans is threatening their prospects in the midterms.

McGaughy, in the Times, notes that over the weekend, French "rocketed to national attention — almost all of it negative — after posting racist attacks on University of Texas students as they enjoyed a moment of pure elation at their football team's improbable comeback victory."

"In one post," McGaughy explains, "Mr. French described South Asian students at the school as 'foreigners' who had 'displaced' Americans at the state's flagship university. Mr. French's posts struck a chord in a way his anti-immigrant and anti-Muslim comments have not before. The messages threatened to fracture the Texas Republicans' attempts at solidarity and tested their willingness to criticize one of their own — just weeks before midterm voting begins. Mr. French denied his posts were racist and threw the blame back on Republicans who didn't fully support his message."

McGaughy adds, "The posts have also given Democrats renewed hope to win a statewide office in Texas for the first time in a generation. While much of the national focus has been on the U.S. Senate race against Mr. Paxton, the scandal-plagued attorney general running against James Talarico, state party officials believe Mr. French and another anti-immigrant hardliner, Don Huffines, are particularly vulnerable. The hardliners on the Republican slate may help Democrats in other races as well."

President Donald Trump attacked Rove as "RINO" for coming out against French and calling him a "bigot," but Rove isn't the only Republican who is criticizing the Texas railroad commissioner nominee).

"The speaker of the Texas House, Dustin Burrows, called on Mr. French to delete Sunday's post," McGaughy observes. "Sen. John Cornyn, who lost in the primary to Mr. Paxton, urged Republicans to condemn Mr. French's 'intolerance and racism' … When asked about the antisemitism directed at his opponent, Mr. French told The Times, at last week's convention, that Mr. Rosenthal was 'not practicing Jewish.' Mr. Rosenthal pushed back. 'Anyone that thinks it's their job to pass judgment on whether I'm Jewish or not can shove it,' he said."

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