A bombshell audio recording published September 30 captures Texas Republican Senate nominee Ken Paxton privately telling donors that the GOP midterm convention in Dallas "dropped our numbers" — as the latest polling places Democrat James Talarico ahead by as many as 6 points with barely a month remaining before Election Day.
A Talarico win on November 3 would mark the first Democratic Senate victory in Texas since 1988 — a result that would reshape the national political map and force a reckoning over whether Trump's endorsement carries the force he publicly claims.