Longtime GOP Senator Lives To Fight Another Day, But Foe Will Have One More Shot To Oust Him

The brutal Texas Republican Senate primary will march into a May runoff as all three major candidates failed to win a majority of the vote Tuesday, multiple outlets project.

Longtime Texas Sen. John Cornyn and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton advancedto a May 26 showdown as Cornyn claimed 42.8% of the vote Tuesday night while Paxton received 40.6%, with 62% of the vote in at 11:00 p.m. EST, according to CNN. Meanwhile, Texas Rep. Wesley Hunt, who only spent five months campaigning for the seat, came in a distant third with only 12.9% of the vote, finding himself far outside of the runoff.

Shortly after it became clear the GOP race would go to a runoff Tuesday night, Paxton seemed to imply that he would win the head-to-head matchup with Cornyn by a double-digit margin — despite receiving less votes than the incumbent during the March primary.

“I’ve been in two statewide runoffs … and never won by less than 30 points, and I don’t plan on starting now. The victory we’re going to secure in this election will be even sweeter than the last ones,” Paxton said, according to political reporter Patrick Svitek.

Cornyn meanwhile took time to personally blast Paxton calling him a “flawed, self-centered and shameless candidate,” Svitek reported. The senator went on to slam what he called the Attorney General’s “indefensible personal behavior and failures in office” adding, “Judgment day is coming for Ken Paxton.”

The results come after Cornyn’s war chest committed to a $10 million ad blitz from early voting to election day. The 24-year incumbent has