The Texas Senate Ad Wars

A Lot Of Money, A Lot Of Ads

$121 million is a lot of money to spend on five people. But that’s how much has been spent in the Democratic and Republican primaries for the U.S. Senate seat occupied by veteran Sen. John Cornyn.

He is in a contentious primary against Attorney General Ken Paxton and Congressman Wesley Hunt. And has been running advertisements touting his re-election since last year.

Cornyn and outside groups have spent nearly $65 million supporting the incumbent, with Hunt trailing at $11 million and presumed frontrunner Paxton’s total at $3.6 million. And we’re not even in the expected runoff.

On the Democratic side, the leading candidates are Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett of Dallas and State Representative James Talarico of Austin. Talarico and his allies have spent around $18 million in his run while Crockett’s so far spent about $4.5 million.

Introductions are everything, and Cornyn mastered it in 2008 when he rolled out his tongue in cheek advertisement “Big John” at the 2008 Republican Party of Texas convention.

It was a knock off of a Jimmy Dean commercial, where a man with a low tenor voice extolls the virtues of Cornyn. Dressed as if he’s a ranch hand, the senator – then running for his second term – is described in the narrator’s deep, crooning voice as a fighter for Texas who delivers for his state. “He rose to the top in just one term, kept Texas in power, made lesser states squirm—big John … big, bad John,” he says.

Career defining as it may be, it was instantly mocked by the political press mocked. Nonetheless Big John easily defeated his Democratic opponent former State Representative Rick Noriega of Houston that fall in Texas.

Paxton kicked off his campaign implying support from President Trump, although the president has actually withheld an endorsement in the race, most recently calling all three candidates “good guys.” But the insinuation in the ad pulls from past comments made by Trump supporting Paxton. At one point, Trump calls Paxton “a really talented guy.” In another, Trump says, “I wish I had him in the White House!” The advertisement has one message, and that is “Trump/Paxton.” Paxton speaks only once, at the end, with the disclaimer “I’m Ken Paxton and I approve this message.”

Hunt’s ads meanwhile use a lot of common campaign phrases: conservative, Texas, Trump, border. When he kicked off his campaign, he opted for an ad of him walking with his family, sitting at a dining table, and in a rodeo coliseum talking about his faith and family.

Among Democrats, introductions are also everything, even in a viral era where the two leading Democrats are essentially both viral sensations.

Crockett’s biggest-viewed advertisement of the cycle was her 45-second rollout. In it, Crockett pitches herself to voters without saying a peep. In fact, she lets a string of insults do the work for her. As Trump insults leap from the screen, she slowly moves her head toward the camera. “Crockett. Crockett,” he says. Then she blinks and smiles.

Talarico’s introductory video was much longer at seven minutes.

He starts at a podium surrounded by colleagues and before a crowd of supporters sitting and standing on a lawn.

“To those who love this state, to those who love this country, to those who love their neighbors, it’s time to start flipping tables,” he declares to cheers and the type of music one could hear while waiting for customer service. Another Talarico ad recently aired in Houston during the Super Bowl.

Inevitable Attack Ads

As campaigns barrel on, attack ads are inevitable, and in the Republican primary, they’ve been quite scathing.

Paxton recently opted for artificial intelligence for an attack ad showing Cornyn literally dancing “the Washington Waltz” with Congresswoman Crockett. The point? To tie him to the Democratic congresswoman, who he’s complimented, who, again, just also happens to also be gunning for his Senate seat.

Cornyn ran his own attack ad, greeting views with a bull.  “Now let’s cut through the bulls***,” says a fast-talking narrator. “Crooked Ken Paxton cheated on his wife. She’s divorcing him on Biblical grounds. So now he’s wrecking another home, sleeping around with a married mother of seven. And remember this. Ken Paxton’s increased his net worth by 700,000 percent taking office.” And that’s just in the first 21 seconds.

As for the Democrats, their attack ads have highlighted alleged flaws on the other side. One by a Crockett-aligned group attacks Talarico for returning from the 2021 quorum break and taking funding from casino magnate Miriam Adelson.

A Talarcio-aligned PAC hit back, calling Crockett “unelectable” and backed by Republicans. That’s ironically the same week Gov. Greg Abbott began running ads boosting Crockett in advertisements.

Recent polls have shown swings back and forth between Crockett and Talarico in the lead. On Friday, reports emerged that Crockett got a last-minute endorsement from Vice President Kamala Harris, who recorded a robocall for the congresswoman.

A final poll from Emerson and Nexstar does show Talarico with a slight edge. That same poll shows Paxton and Cornyn advancing into a runoff.