Neil Bush says that he will vote for Democrat James Talarico due to reservations about Republican candidate Ken Paxton.
Published On ۲۲ Oct ۲۰۲۶
Neil Bush, brother of former Republican President George W Bush, has said that he voted for the Democratic candidate James Talarico in a crucial race for the United States Senate.
In a social media post on Tuesday, Bush said he voted for Talarico due to concerns about the Republican candidate, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.
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Talarico and Paxton are in a tight race for Texas’s open Senate seat. Democrats are hoping to seize control of the ۱۰۰-member Senate in the November ۳ midterm elections, when ۳۵ seats will be on the ballot.
Bush’s endorsement of Talarico is the latest sign of division among Texas Republicans.
Bush comes from a prominent Republican family: not only was his brother a president, but his father, the late George HW Bush, was too.
“My concerns about his judgment and conduct are hardly mine alone,” Bush wrote. “He was impeached by the Republican-controlled Texas House, although subsequently acquitted by the Texas Senate.”
To explain his decision, Bush pointed to Paxton’s divisive track record, including efforts to support President Donald Trump’s false claims about the ۲۰۲۰ presidential election.
“I have been deeply troubled by Paxton’s conduct as Texas Attorney General, particularly his decision to challenge the results of the ۲۰۲۰ presidential election in other states in an effort to help Donald Trump remain in power,” Bush said.
“I believe that effort was an affront to our democratic institutions and the peaceful transfer of power.”
His brother, the former president, has largely receded from political life and has declined to endorse candidates in recent elections. Before serving in the White House from ۲۰۰۱ to ۲۰۰۹, George W Bush was governor of Texas.
But George W Bush’s daughter Barbara Bush has also shown her support for Talarico by donating to a political action committee backing his campaign.
Texas has long been considered a Republican stronghold, and Democrats have not won a Senate race in the state since ۱۹۸۸.
But polls show Talarico locked in a close race with Paxton, who defeated incumbent Senator John Cornyn in the Republican Party’s primary run-off on May ۲۶.
Paxton had secured an endorsement from Trump on May ۱۹, days before the run-off.
In a statement, Trump criticised Cornyn as “not supportive of [him] when times were tough”, while praising Paxton as a “MAGA Warrior”.
Some Republicans have expressed frustration over Trump’s intervention on Paxton’s behalf, given the vulnerabilities posed by his state impeachment and other scandals.
A Marist poll released on October ۱۴ found Talarico winning ۴۷ percent of the vote compared to ۴۵ percent for Paxton.
