Cornyn heads into Texas Senate runoff with more money than Paxton

Texas GOP Sen. John Cornyn boasts a significantly larger war chest than his primary opponent, putting the embattled incumbent in a stronger financial position ahead of the May runoff.

Cornyn ended the first quarter of the year with more than $8 million in cash on hand, compared with Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s $2.6 million in the bank, according to disclosures filed with the Federal Election Commission.

The Cornyn-Paxton face-off has grown nasty and highly personal as Republicans grow uneasy about beating James Talarico, the Democratic Senate nominee who raised an extraordinary $27 million last quarter and has about $9.9 million cash on hand. President Donald Trump has so far declined to endorse in the race, despite teasing a pick for several weeks.

Cornyn’s joint fundraising committees comprised the vast majority of his roughly $9 million fundraising haul. Paxton reported raising $2.2 million.