President Donald Trump’s political operation is making a major investment in the Texas Senate race, with MAGA Inc. spending $10 million on advertising to support Republican Ken Paxton and target Democratic nominee James Talarico.
The expenditure, disclosed Saturday in a Federal Election Commission filing, marks MAGA Inc.’s first major general-election investment of the 2026 midterms. The $10 million ad buy is split evenly, with $5 million going toward advertising supporting Paxton and another $5 million toward advertising opposing Talarico. The money was paid to political media firm Del Ray Media for television and digital advertising.
The spending comes as a Texas Senate contest once expected to favor Republicans has developed into one of the more closely watched races of the midterm cycle.
Alex Pfeiffer, a spokesperson for MAGA Inc., said the group’s advertising will focus heavily on taxes, portraying Talarico as supporting policies that would increase costs for Texans.
“MAGA Inc. is going to ensure Texas knows about Talarico’s radical policies and elects Ken Paxton to the U.S. Senate,” Pfeiffer said Saturday.
Talarico has called for higher taxes on billionaires while proposing tax cuts for working families and small businesses. Paxton, meanwhile, has emphasized tax relief and affordability during his campaign.
Other Republican-aligned groups are also entering the contest. The Lone Star Liberty PAC is expected to target Talarico over China-related issues, including his vote against legislation establishing criminal penalties related to certain purchases of Texas land by foreign entities.
Republicans pour resources into Texas
MAGA Inc.’s intervention follows growing concern among Republicans about the competitiveness of the race.
Paxton defeated incumbent Sen. John Cornyn in the Republican primary runoff after receiving Trump’s endorsement. But polling since the primary has shown a close general-election contest between Paxton and Talarico. Recent surveys have produced varying results, with several showing Talarico narrowly ahead and others showing the candidates tied.
Republican strategist Karl Rove argued Wednesday that Paxton needed additional outside help.
“If the president wants to have Paxton win, he needs to be tossing a lot of money Paxton’s way so that ads can be run that depict Talarico as the far-left winger that he is,” Rove said.
MAGA Inc. has substantial resources available heading into the final stretch of the midterms. Federal filings showed the group had more than $400 million available this summer, and Trump has indicated that his political operation intends to spend heavily on Republican candidates while preserving some money for the 2028 election cycle.
The $10 million Texas expenditure represents a significant escalation after Republican candidates and strategists had publicly called on Trump’s political operation to begin deploying more of its cash reserves in competitive races.
Texas race moves to toss-up
The increased spending also reflects how dramatically the political environment surrounding the Texas Senate seat has changed.
Trump carried Texas by roughly 14 percentage points in the 2024 presidential election, and Democrats have not won a statewide election in Texas in more than three decades. But Paxton has faced persistent questions about his general-election strength.
Paxton was impeached by the Texas House in 2023 on charges that included bribery and abuse of office. The Texas Senate later acquitted him and he remained attorney general.
Talarico, meanwhile, has significantly outraised Paxton, giving the Democrat the resources to compete in Texas’ expensive media markets.
The changing dynamics prompted the nonpartisan Cook Political Report in August to move the Texas Senate contest from “Lean Republican” to “Toss Up.”
That shift has raised the stakes for both parties. Republicans are seeking to defend a Senate seat they have controlled for decades, while Democrats see Texas as a potential opportunity to expand the Senate map beyond traditional battleground states.
