Ken Paxton Cheered at CPAC as Cornyn Faces Boos Ahead of Runoff

When CPAC senior fellow Mercedes Schlapp asked the crowd at the Gaylord Texan Resort in Grapevine who they planned to vote for in the May 26 Republican primary runoff, the answer arrived before any hand count was needed. Ken Paxton's name drew a loud cheer. John Cornyn's name drew muted boos. "That explains why he's not coming," Schlapp quipped.

The four-term senator was not in the room. Cornyn stayed in Washington, D.C., despite calls from CPAC leadership to appear, handing his opponent an uncontested platform and a crowd that made no secret of where it stood.

Paxton, the Texas attorney general, was the featured speaker at the Ronald Reagan Dinner on Friday night, a prime slot at a conference that has long served as a pulse check for the GOP. In his remarks, he portrayed Cornyn, 74, as a career politician who lacks "one good accomplishment" to show for a public office career that started in 1985 and includes stints as a district judge, a Texas Supreme Court justice, the state attorney general and four terms in the Senate. Steve Bannon amplified the absurdity of Cornyn's no-show from the same stage: "Cornyn's not coming. You know why? He didn't think you were important enough to talk to."

The dynamics at CPAC revealed more than crowd preference. They mapped the fault lines of a Texas GOP increasingly fractured between an establishment wing that has controlled the state's federal representation for decades and a base that views that tenure as disqualifying rather than distinguished. Senate Republicans' campaign arm has backed Cornyn and raised alarm that a Paxton primary win could open the door for a rare Democratic flip in November, when the GOP nominee faces Democratic nominee James Talarico in the general election.

At the center of the standoff sits Donald Trump, whose endorsement both candidates have been actively courting. After the primary, Trump said he would back one candidate and ask the other to drop out, but he has stayed out of the race as the May 26 runoff approaches. Paxton traveled to Florida last week to attend a Palm Beach County GOP gala at Mar-a-Lago, where he was seen mingling with guests and speaking briefly with Trump, according to a source familiar with the exchange. A pro-Paxton super PAC separately launched a TV ad in the West Palm Beach media market as Trump visited Florida earlier this month, a move widely seen as an effort to court an endorsement. The deadline to formally drop out of the race has already passed, meaning both candidates will appear on the May ballot regardless of what Trump decides.

The conference itself reflected the GOP's broader moment of uncertainty. Trump reportedly missed CPAC for the first time in a decade. Vice President JD Vance, who spoke at last year's gathering, was also absent. Elon Musk, who wielded a chainsaw on the CPAC stage a year ago as he led the Department of Government Efficiency through sweeping federal workforce cuts, was nowhere to be found after his alliance with Trump collapsed over the "big, beautiful bill" legislation. The gathering came amid party rifts over the Iran war and growing anxiety ahead of midterms in which Republicans are fighting to keep control of Congress.

The May 26 runoff is the next concrete test of whether the base's enthusiasm in Grapevine translates into votes. Many Republicans in Washington have urged Trump to back Cornyn specifically to avoid an expensive intraparty fight that could weaken the eventual nominee against Talarico. Whether Trump acts on those calls or lets the primary run its course may define not just one Senate seat but the shape of the Texas GOP's next chapter.