Live results: Ken Paxton faces James Talarico in Texas Senate race

( NewsNation ) — Republican Ken Paxton faces off against Democrat James Talarico in the race to represent Texas in the U.S. Senate.

The winner will replace Republican Sen. John Cornyn, who Paxton beat out in a runoff in May.

Paxton is endorsed by President Donald Trump and strongly aligns his mission with the president's. He states he will work alongside Trump to take on Big Pharma and Big Food, finish the border wall, focus on national sovereignty and advance an America First foreign policy.

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Talarico, a Texas House representative, centers his campaign on serving working people over corporations, lowering healthcare costs and boosting public education. He identifies himself as anti-corruption and points to billionaires, stating on his campaign website that the biggest divide in this country is not right vs. left but top vs. bottom.

Paxton has gone after Talarico's stances, including his recent statement on gender reassignment surgery. Talarico said in an interview he opposes such surgeries for minors.

"This is just the latest example of Talarico masquerading as a moderate when the truth is he's the most radical Democrat to ever run statewide in Texas history," Paxton stated in a news release, according to the El Paso Times.

As the race has heated up, several public figures have raised alarms about each candidate, with President Trump stating on Truth Social that Talarico "may be the worst candidate I have ever seen."

Attorney Dan Cogdell, who defended Paxton when he was impeached in 2023 during his time as Texas attorney general, has since stated that Paxton "has lost sight of his core mission which is to represent the people of Texas."

The attorney went on to endorse Talarico, stating that "unlike Ken, I believe to my core that James Talarico believes in unity over division."