Republican Senate nominee and Attorney General Ken Paxton (R-TX) faces another setback after a newly leaked audio recording captures him discussing his campaign struggles and other Texas Republican candidates.
According to audio obtained by Rolling Stone, Paxton can be heard saying Gov. Greg Abbott (R-TX), who is up for reelection, is “struggling” against Democratic nominee Gina Hinojosa (D-TX).
“But he has a lot of money,” Paxton added. “She [Hinojosa] has none.”
The two gubernatorial candidates remain in a competitive race, although Gov. Abbott has maintained his lead in Texas for nearly 12 years.
Paxton added that Abbott has more name recognition than Hinojosa, giving him an edge Paxton lacks against Democratic Senate nominee James Talarico (D-TX).
“And if I asked 99 people in a room, or 100 people in a room, maybe one would know…” Paxton said, though the rest of the audio is inaudible.
This is not Paxton’s first controversial audio leak.
Earlier this month, one recording revealed Paxton blaming President Donald Trump for his poor polling numbers. In another, he is heard saying he felt he had little control over his campaign messaging. In a third, he criticized Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) for not supporting him.
In the most recent audio leak, Paxton also compared Gov. Abbott’s campaign to his own, arguing he did not face the same “brutal” primary with “negative ads” that he experienced against Talarico.
“Those are my two disadvantages,” Paxton said. “Not having time to raise more money, having the negative ads, and my opponent was well funded and well known.”
As for the rest of the Democratic ticket in Texas, Paxton said “no one” knows who they are.
“Who’s running for Texas AG as a Democrat? Who’s running for Lieutenant Governor? I can’t even name her name,” Paxton said of Vikki Goodwin, running as the Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor.
