From the jump, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton led incumbent Sen. John Cornyn by a wide margin across the state. But who did Tarrant County voters want to win?
Over 62,700 Tarrant County Republicans voted in the primary runoff, which is just under 5% of registered voters.
With only ballots from early voting counted at 7 p.m., Paxton led in Tarrant County by 18 percentage points. In the attorney general race, Mayes Middleton led Chip Roy by 16 percentage points. Bo French led incumbent Jim Wright by eight percentage points in the railroad commissioner race.
At 9 p.m., Paxton’s lead increased to 19 percentage points with 59.5% of the votes to Cornyn’s 40.5%. Middleton led Roy 58% to 42%. French had 53.7% of votes to Wright’s 46.3%.
With all but two polling locations reporting at 11 p.m., Paxton had a 40 percentage point lead on Cornyn. Middleton had 57.5% of the vote to Roy’s 42.5%. French narrowly led Wright in the railroad commissioner race 51.9% to 48.1%.
According to unofficial election results, Tarrant County voters resoundingly wanted Paxton and Middleton but were split over the race for railroad commissioner.
The Associated Press called the statewide race for Middleton as the Republicans’ nominee just before 11 p.m. French declared victory over Roy at 11:45 p.m.
This story was originally published May 26, 2026 at 7:59 PM.
Fort Worth Star-Telegram
Rachel Royster is a news and government reporter for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, specifically focused on Tarrant County. She joined the newsroom after interning at the Austin American-Statesman, the Waco Tribune-Herald and Capital Community News in DC. A Houston native and Baylor grad, Rachel enjoys traveling, reading and being outside. She welcomes any and all news tips to her email.