Advertising spending in the Texas U.S. Senate race between Republican Ken Paxton and Democrat James Talarico has exceeded $500 million, making it the second nonpresidential race to reach that threshold. The election is scheduled for November 3, 2026.
Where
Statewide
When
Oct. 31, 2026
Sources
Reported by 2 outlets
Taxes and money
The sources don't state an effect on taxes. They do state these figures.
Advertising spending and reservations in Texas Senate raceover $500 million12Who pays or receives it: campaigns, political parties, outside groups
Independent expenditures by Musk-directed political committees supporting Paxtonover $210 million2Who pays or receives it: Elon Musk political committees
Coming up
Tuesday, November 3, 2026. Texas U.S. Senate election between Paxton and Talarico (Statewide)2
Who's involved
Ken PaxtonRepublican U.S. Senate candidate, Texas attorney general since 2015
James TalaricoDemocrat U.S. Senate candidate, state legislator since 2019
Elon MuskFunder of political committees supporting Paxton
AdImpactTracking advertising spending and reservations
The facts
Texas Senate race is the second nonpresidential race to surpass $500 million in advertising spending.1
The race involves Republican Ken Paxton and Democrat James Talarico.12Stated by 2 sources
Ohio's 2024 Senate race and Ohio's 2026 Senate race are the only other nonpresidential races with similar spending.1
These are statements and claims made by the people involved. They are reported, not verified.
Talarico Musk is trying to buy the Senate seat; advertising claims about his position on surgical gender transition are lies.2
Republican political consultant Increased Democratic primary voting relative to Republican primary voting in early voting is unprecedented.2
Paxton campaign Built on promises of low taxes, fighting illegal immigration, and support for Trump agenda.2
Talarico campaign Opposes cuts to healthcare funding, supports term limits for Congress, advocates shifting tax burden from middle class to corporations and wealthy Americans.2
How they headlined it
The same event, as each outlet put it. Marked words appear in only one outlet's headline.
Ohio’s U.S. Senate race tops $500 million in advertising as Election Day nears
These outlets were found through Google News headlines. Google decides which outlets appear there, and they lean mostly one way, so this sheet can only be as balanced as the reporting it was built from. Leanings are AllSides Media Bias Ratings.
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$$150 million for spending supporting Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton
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