A no bullshit non-partisan comparison of political candidates
Aggregate score
Cornyn 5.1Paxton 2.7 C +2.4
Scoring · Institutions & organizations

Texas Association of Business

7
4
Margin
C +3

Texas's chamber-of-commerce equivalent: pro-business, pro-tort-reform, anti-excessive-litigation, pro-property-rights, pro-energy-industry, pro-legal-immigration (especially skilled labor), pro-free-trade, generally Republican-aligned but pragmatic. Cornyn fits the TAB framework about as well as a Texas Republican senator can: tax cuts, tort reform, deregulation, pro-energy, free trade, legal-immigration engagement, CHIPS-Act manufacturing investment, and clean institutional process. Paxton wins on tort reform, deregulation, anti-ESG, and energy; loses on tariffs, abuse-of-process litigation (suing companies that disagree with him politically isn't pro-business), forum-shopping practices, and the personal scandals affecting Texas investor confidence.

Sources

  1. Ken Paxton for U.S. Senate, official campaign issues page, accessed May 2026. (full list)
  2. Sen. John Cornyn, official Senate website and 2026 re-election campaign issues page, accessed May 2026 (cornyn.senate.gov; johncornyn.com). (full list)
  3. Gabby Birenbaum, 'On the issues: A Q&A with Ken Paxton and John Cornyn,' Texas Tribune, April 20, 2026. (full list)
  4. Texas Tribune / ProPublica, 'Paxton files lawsuits in courts that could have more favorable outcomes,' May 20, 2026. (full list)