Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton received enthusiastic support from conservative activists at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Grapevine, Texas, as he campaigns for the Republican Senate nomination against incumbent John Cornyn.

Paxton served as the keynote speaker at the Ronald Reagan dinner Friday night, where he thanked supporters for standing by him during his impeachment proceedings four years ago. "I want you to know, there's only one reason I got through all that, and it's by the grace of God," Paxton told the crowd, referring to his acquittal on corruption charges by the Texas Legislature.

The attorney general and Senator Cornyn are headed to a May 26 runoff after neither candidate secured enough votes in the March 3 primary, where Cornyn finished first. While Cornyn has raised significantly more money and has backing from the party establishment in Washington, Paxton has demonstrated strong grassroots support among the party's conservative base.

Throughout the conference, speakers praised Paxton as representing the MAGA movement's grassroots. When CPAC senior fellow Mercedes Schlapp polled the crowd for support, Paxton received loud cheers while Cornyn drew some boos. Cornyn did not attend the conference.

Some conservative Republicans expressed concerns about Cornyn's lengthy tenure in office and past positions, including his early criticism of Trump's border wall proposal in 2016 and his support for gun control legislation after the Uvalde school shooting in 2022. Paxton has sought to align himself closely with Trump's priorities, including embracing the SAVE Act, which would require strict proof-of-citizenship requirements for voting.

President Trump had previously indicated he would endorse either candidate but has not yet made an announcement. The winner of the Republican runoff will face Democratic nominee James Talarico in the general election.