Scrutinel— 2026 midterms

UpdatedAug 24, 2026, 5:12 AM UTC
To election day72 days
Simulations200,000

Texas — U.S. Senate

Currently held by a Republican · open seat

Democrat
James Talarico
38%
Republican
Ken Paxton
62%
ForecastTilt R
Projected margin
R+2.5
80% range
R+12.8 to D+7.9
Partisan lean
R+11.5
Uncertainty multiplier
1.16×

The 80% range comes from 200,000 simulations in which this race’s error is correlated with every other race through the national, state and demographic layers.

How the estimate is built
Polls 58%Fundamentals 42%
Polling average
R+0.6
Fundamentals
R+3.6
Blended
R+1.9
Similar-race shift
+0.3
Poll–fundamentals gap
3.1 pts
PollingDR matchup
Polls in window
16
Distinct pollsters
13
Most recent
August 10, 2026
Democrat
46.1%
Republican
46.7%
Undecided / other
7.1%
Spread between polls
1.8 pts
Fundamentals
Partisan lean
R+11.5
Elasticity
1.10
Incumbency
0.0
Candidate experience
0.0
Fundraising
+3.4
National environment
D+5.3
Expected margin
R+3.9

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