Republicans from across the country gathered in Dallas last week for a first-of-its-kind midterm convention that put Texas politics, the battle for Congress and President Donald Trump squarely in the national spotlight.
The two-night Republican National Convention featured Trump, Vice President JD Vance and a long list of Texas elected officials and congressional candidates. The gathering was unusual for a party convention because it came during a midterm election rather than a presidential election year.
Republicans used the event to make their case for retaining control of Congress in November, emphasizing immigration and border security, taxes, transgender issues and warnings about socialism and communism. Speakers also promoted tax policies enacted under Trump, including provisions affecting tips, overtime and Social Security.
“We’re hosting this midterm convention so we can talk directly to you about our record and President Trump’s accomplishments, so you can hear exactly what’s at stake for our country this November,” U.S. Rep. Brandon Gill (R-TX-26) told the convention. “This election is very clear: It’s the mainstream versus the extreme.”
But much of the attention ultimately returned to Trump and his effort to turn out voters when his own name is not on the ballot.
Trump asks Republicans to vote like he’s running
Trump spoke for nearly two hours on the convention's opening night before returning for a shorter appearance Thursday. His message was straightforward: Republicans need the voters who supported him in presidential elections to show up again in November.
“We have something going that's so good — we can't let that string be broken,” Trump said while acknowledging the historical difficulty a president's party faces during midterm elections.
“When I'm running, we get tremendous numbers of votes and people coming out, and they vote for the senators and congressmen and women, but when I'm not running, it's a little different,” Trump said.
His solution was to ask supporters to “pretend that I'm on the ballot.”
Trump said he intends to campaign in states and districts with competitive congressional races, potentially turning the Dallas convention into the kickoff of a nationwide midterm campaign tour.
Texas will be part of that effort.
Trump pledged to return to the state to campaign for Republican U.S. Senate nominee Ken Paxton, who is facing Democratic state Rep. James Talarico of Austin in one of the year's closely watched Senate contests.
“And if I have to, I'll come back twice or three times,” Trump said.
Trump promises $5,000 payments if GOP keeps Congress
Trump also delivered one of the convention's biggest surprises when he proposed sending a $5,000 “dividend” to every adult U.S. citizen if Republicans retain control of the House and Senate.
“Because of our tremendous strength and success economically, I will issue a dividend to every adult citizen in the United States of America for $5,000,” Trump said.
Trump said tariff revenue and economic growth could help pay for the proposal. Estimates put its potential cost above $1 trillion, and House Speaker Mike Johnson has since said the payments would require congressional approval.
Trump throws his weight behind Paxton
Few Texas races received as much attention at the convention as the Senate contest between Paxton and Talarico.
Trump strongly endorsed Paxton's candidacy while repeatedly poking fun at the attorney general's appearance and speaking style.
“He may not dress right, he may not talk exactly perfectly, and he may not be the best-looking guy I've ever seen, but he’s the greatest attorney general in America and he deserves to be your next senator,” Trump said.
“I don’t know if he’s ever going to speak to me again, but I don’t care, as long as he wins,” Trump joked. “I don't have to speak to him — he’s going to vote the way we would vote.”
Trump nevertheless made clear that electing Paxton is a priority and pledged to campaign for him in Texas.
Paxton used his own convention appearance to focus heavily on the economy and his “Protecting the Texas Promise” plan. His proposals include tax deductions for home down payments and medical expenses, along with a deduction covering some health-related expenses.
Paxton also repeatedly attacked Talarico, calling him a “Democratic socialist who never met a tax increase he didn’t love.”
“California already has two senators; it doesn’t need a third,” Paxton said, while labeling Talarico the “most radical Democrat in Texas history.”
Talarico responded to the attacks by returning to one of his campaign's central arguments against Paxton, accusing the attorney general of corruption and questioning how Paxton accumulated his wealth while holding public office.
The competitiveness of the race has helped elevate Texas on the national political map heading toward November. Public polling has shown a substantially closer contest than Texas Republicans have typically faced in recent statewide elections.
South Texas Republicans take the stage
The convention also showcased Republican candidates from South Texas, a region where the GOP has made significant gains in recent elections and where several competitive congressional races are underway.
U.S. Rep. Monica De La Cruz (R-TX-15) focused primarily on economic issues while arguing that Republican policies have improved opportunities for working families.
“And your grandparents, and my abuelos, will look down from heaven above with pride, knowing that everything they worked for their families was worth it. Because this country is worth fighting for,” De La Cruz said.
Her brother, Carlos De La Cruz, the Trump-endorsed Republican candidate in Congressional District 35, highlighted his military experience and work along the southern border.
“In the Air Force, I was deployed to our southern border, where I worked alongside our customs agents conducting drug interdiction side by side, our agents against some of the most dangerous cartels in the world,” he said. “I've seen what these criminal enterprises do to our communities, and I have seen what happens when politicians look the other way.”
Eric Flores, the Republican candidate in Congressional District 34, similarly pointed to his Texas Army National Guard experience.
“Border security isn't a campaign talking point for me,” Flores said.
Webb County Judge Tano Tijerina, the Republican candidate in Congressional District 28, focused on his decision to leave the Democratic Party and become a Republican in 2024.
“I didn't leave the Democratic Party. The party left me. It left my faith. It left my family. It left the working people of South Texas who get up every morning with callused hands and build this country,” Tijerina said.
Abbott, Patrick and Cruz make the Texas case
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz used their convention appearances to promote Texas' economy and contrast Republican policies with those advocated by Democrats.
Abbott directly challenged Democrats' affordability message.
“These Democrats, they voted for an income tax in Texas. They voted to raise your property taxes and they support Green New Deal policies that would send hundreds of thousands of our oil and gas workers to the unemployment line,” Abbott said.
Patrick pointed to migration from other states and business investment as evidence of Texas' economic strength, crediting the state's tax and regulatory policies.
Abbott and Cruz also addressed Islamic law and Islamism, issues that have received increasing attention from Texas Republicans.
“We will fully ban sharia law in Texas,” Abbott said.
Cruz called sharia law “fundamentally inconsistent with the Constitution” and said it has “no place in America.”
“We must stand and defeat the communists. We must stand and defeat the Islamists. And together, arm in arm, we must save America,” Cruz said.
Texas takes center stage heading into November
For two nights in Dallas, Republicans attempted to frame the 2026 midterms as a choice between continuing Trump's agenda and turning control of Congress over to Democrats.
Texas played an outsized role in that message.
The state's competitive Senate contest and a collection of closely watched congressional races, particularly in South Texas, gave Texas candidates plenty of time on the national stage.
Trump, meanwhile, made clear that he intends to remain at the center of the Republican campaign even without his name appearing on the ballot.
