‘True Maga warrior’ takes on old-guard Texan in key test of Trump’s GOP grip

Scandal-plagued Ken Paxton has won Trump's backing - can he defeat John Cornyn in a high-stakes primary runoff?

Ken Paxton, the state attorney general, takes on four-term incumbent John Cornyn on Tuesday in the ugliest primary election of the year. The winner of the Republican Senate runoff in Texas will contest November's general election against Democrat James Talarico.

Paxton and Cornyn have spent months coveting the most valuable endorsement in Republican politics: Donald Trump. Last week, scandal-plagued Paxton got it, with the US president describing him as a true Maga warrior".