Trump stays neutral as Cornyn, Paxton and Hunt battle for Senate nomination

Paxton leads the field, Hunt makes his case, and the incumbent Cornyn warns against putting forward a “flawed” nominee.

Early voting begins this week in the Republican primary for U.S. Senate, one of the most expensive races in the country, as incumbent Sen. John Cornyn works to fend off two challengers: Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and Houston-area Congressman Wesley Hunt.

All three candidates held events in North Texas as the voting period got underway. President Donald Trump said he likes all three candidates, leaving them to fight it out.

Cornyn spent part of the week touting support from law enforcement leaders across Texas, including former Texas Department of Public Safety Director Steve McCraw. At an event in Fort Worth, Cornyn also appeared alongside major police associations, Fort Worth Mayor Mattie Parker, and Congressman Craig Goldman.

Cornyn argued he is the strongest candidate to face Democrats in November, while also taking aim at Paxton, his chief rival.

"I’m proud of building the Republican party in Texas and I’m not willing to stand on the sidelines and see it destroyed by nominating a flawed and corrupt nominee like Ken Paxton," Cornyn said.

Cornyn also referenced Paxton’s personal controversies, including an affair and the recent divorce filing by State Sen. Angela Paxton on "biblical grounds."

Cornyn framed those issues as a matter of trust.

"If his own family can’t trust him. You can’t trust him either," Cornyn said.

At an event Tuesday night, Paxton told reporters Cornyn is focusing on his personal life because Republican voters believe the incumbent is too moderate.

“I've been attacked since I've been in the office, and I'm not surprised that John Cornyn's focused on personal things as opposed to talking about what he's accomplished," said Paxton.

Hunt, speaking earlier this week at an event in Dallas, argued Texas needs a new generation of leadership.

If none of the candidates get more than 50% of the vote, the top two candidates will advance to a runoff election in late May. There are roughly two weeks of early voting, and the primary election day is March 3.