Talarico defeats Crockett in Texas primary, CNN and Decision Desk HQ report

Talarico prevails in Texas Senate primary

Phillip M. Bailey

Talarico, whose Christian faith and populist-mindedness grabbed national attention, pulled off an upset against Crockett in the March 3 Senate primary for the Democratic nomination, CNN and Decision Desk HQ reported.

The 36-year-old former middle school teacher positioned himself as a grassroots contender, arguing that America's politics is more about "top vs. the bottom" than a traditional liberal against conservative worldview.

Crockett entered the race three months after Talarico and was considered, by many, the favorite given her national profile and fundraising prowess. But he raked in millions during a primary sprint that became more about a question of electability between the two than their slightly different progressive stances.

Talarico regularly pounced on the uber-wealthy during his primary bid, focusing largely on improving wages and tackling affordability in housing and childcare.

Democrats haven't won a Texas Senate race since 1988, but Talarico's supporters argue that he was better positioned than Crockett — known for her quick-witted jousts with President Donald Trump and his allies — in peeling away moderate-to-conservative voters.

Rep. Dan Crenshaw loses to GOP primary challenger Steve Toth in Texas

Terry Collins

Texas GOP State Rep. Steve Toth defeated incumbent Rep. Dan Crenshaw, NBC News and the Associated Press reported, in a newly mapped 2nd Congressional District primary race.

"Congressional District 2 voters want a representative in D.C. who will stand firm in his convictions, fight for his constituents, and follow through on his promises. I won’t let them down," Toth said in a news release, the Texas Tribune reported.

Toth, a conservative challenger, had the support of Sen. Ted Cruz. Crenshaw, a former Navy SEAL, was the only Texas Republican incumbent in the House running without Trump's endorsement.

Laurie Buckhout wins GOP primary for redrawn North Carolina district

Kathryn Palmer

Laurie Buckhout won the Republican Party's nomination in North Carolina's 1st Congressional District, according to the Associated Press and Decision Desk HQ, teeing up a rematch with the incumbent Democrat.

Buckhout is a retired Army colonel who briefly served as President Donald Trump's acting assistant secretary of war for cyber policy.

She will face Democratic Rep. Don Davis in November for a second time after losing her bid by a few points in 2024. Davis ran in the March 3 primaries uncontested. The congressman will attempt to hold onto his seat after the state's GOP-led legislature passed redrawn maps in October 2025. The changes boosted Republican odds in the new district, making it among the state's most competitive races in November.

The district also previously included several of the state's predominantly Black counties, according to the Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA TODAY Network. In the past decade, North Carolina's map has already been redrawn four times − more redraws than any other state.

Cornyn, Paxton head to GOP runoff

Phillip M. Bailey

Sen. John Cornyn and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton will push their bitter rivalry into a runoff election, according to NBC News and Decision Desk HQ, as neither are projected to pick up over 50% of the vote.

Cornyn is considered a workhouse in the Senate and an institution in Lone Star State politics, but he faced a significant insurgency from Paxton and Rep. Wesley Hunt, who charged that he wasn't a sufficient ally for President Donald Trump.

The 74-year-old incumbent was backed by Senate Republican leaders and pummeled both rivals. He was particularly focused on Paxton's bribery allegations and marital drama, which is expected to escalate going into the May 26 rematch.

Trump didn't endorse in the 3-way primary, but a GOP operative close to the Cornyn campaign told USA TODAY top Senate leaders and former advisors to the president will likely lobby on the senator's behalf with a message that, "now is the time Texas is put to bed for the sake of the Senate majority."

No results tonight, Crockett predicts

Phillip M. Bailey

Speaking to supporters at her campaign watch party after the Texas Supreme Court paused an order extending voting hours in her political backyard, Crockett said "we're not going to have election results tonight."

"Unfortunately, this is what Republicans like to do, and so they specifically targeted Dallas County, and I think we all know why," she said.

As primary votes are being tallied the higher court's ruling means that ballots cast in the county after 7 p.m. local time will have to be separated out. It is unclear if those votes will be counted.

"I won't be back tonight, because I have no idea of when we're going to get results, and I fully anticipate it won't be until tomorrow," Crockett told supporters.

Texas Supreme Court blocks voting extension

Phillip M. Bailey

The Texas Supreme Court has temporarily blocked a judge's earlier order that extended voting by two hours in Dallas County, which is considered a stronghold for Jasmine Crockett.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who is seeking the Republican Senate nomination, asked for the ruling to be overturned, arguing the local judge failed to give his office proper notice about the two additional hours.

People who arrived after 7 p.m. CT were being given provisional ballots in order to track which were cast as part of the extended polling hours. The state Supreme Court's temporary block means county officials must now separate the ballots out.

The Crockett campaign told USA TODAY they are tracking the developments and "fighting back." Speaking at the African American Museum of Dallas earlier in the evening, the congresswoman alleged this "was always the plan," to disrupt the Democratic primary election. She implored her supporters to stay in line.

Talarico holds early lead over Crockett in close Texas Senate race

Terry Collins

Texas state Rep. James Talarico is holding a lead in early voting over U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett in a hotly-contested Democratic primary battle for the Senate.

Talarico is holding a nearly eight percentage point lead over Crockett with more than 1 million voters casting ballots as the polls just closed in a Senate race still too early to call with just 51% of the vote counted, according to the Associated Press.

Arkansas GOP Congressman French Hill clinches primary win

Terry Collins

Longtime incumbent Rep. French Hill defeated challenger Chase McDowell in Arkansas' GOP 2nd district primary.

A six-term congressman, Hill, chair of the House Financial Services Committee, decisively won the eight-county district that includes the city of Little Rock, according to NBC News and the Associated Press.

In November, Hill will likely face Democratic contender Chris Jones, a former 2022 Arkansas gubernatorial candidate, who is beating first-time candidate Zach Huffman, the Associated Press reported.

Early returns suggest tight race for two dueling incumbents in Texas

Kathryn Palmer

In Texas' 18th Congressional District primary, there are two Democratic incumbents thanks to the state's map redraw: Rep. Al Green and Rep. Christian Menefee.

In early returns from the Associated Press, with 68% of votes in, Menefee is in the lead by a little more than five percentage points. In the latest batch of numbers, Menefee was at 48.8% to Green's 43.1%.

If neither candidate clears the 50% threshold, the race will head to a runoff. If that happens, it will be the second runoff for Menefee in the span of a few months. He won a runoff special election in January for the 18th district seat, and was sworn in early February. Menefee and Green are facing off to serve a full two-year term in the newly redrawn 18th Congressional district beginning in 2027.

Jamie Ager wins Democratic slot in pivotal North Carolina district

Kathryn Palmer

Political newcomer Jamie Ager has secured the Democratic Party's nomination for North Carolina's 11th Congressional District, according to the Associated Press and NBC News, setting the stage for a November battle in an attempt to flip the GOP-held seat.

Republican incumbent Rep. Chuck Edwards sailed through the March 3 primaries to secure his party's nomination, according to the outlets. Edwards is seeking a third term in Congress and faced Adam Smith, a former Green Beret, in the primary race.

The district covers much of the mountainous and rural regions of western North Carolina, including Asheville, Hendersonville and Brevard. Though the state implemented redistricting last year that boosted the GOP in the 2026 midterm elections, the district's boundaries were not affected.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has backed Ager, a fourth-generation farmer, in its efforts to flip 12 House seats across the country from red to blue.

Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton breezes to primary win

Terry Collins

Incumbent Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton breezed through his Senate primary race, easily defeating Republican challengers Micah Ashby, a minister from Bradford, Arkansas, and Jeb Little, an Arkansas State Police trooper.

Cotton, the influential chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee and a member of the bipartisan Gang of Eight, handily won the majority of the vote, according to NBC News and the Associated Press.

Cotton, who ran unopposed in his 2014 and 2020 primaries, will go on to face Democrats Ethan Dunbar, the current mayor of Lewisville, Arkansas, or first-time candidate Hallie Shoffner, a sixth-generation farmer whose family recently sold their 2,000-acre farm due to costs.

Cotton will be heavily favored to win reelection in November, as Arkansas hasn’t elected a Democratic candidate to statewide office since 2010.

Roy Cooper, Michael Whatley to face off in NC Senate race

Kathryn Palmer

Former Gov. Roy Cooper is heading for a November matchup with former Republican National Committee Chair Michael Whatley for North Carolina's Senate seat.

Cooper has snagged the Democratic nomination for the pivotal swing state's Senate seat, according to CNN andNBC News. Cooper was the North Carolina governor from 2017 to 2025, and he previously served in the state’s legislature and as North Carolina’s attorney general. 

As was largely expected, Whatley has secured his party's nomination on the Republican ticket, according to the outlets.

Whatley, also a former North Carolina GOP Chair, was backed by an endorsement from President Donald Trump. The Senate seat is currently held by Republican Sen. Thom Tillis, but he decided not to run for reelection last year. Tillis was a key Republican holdout on Trump's sweeping 2025 tax bill and caught blowback for his break with the party on the legislation.

Judge extends voting hours in Texas county

Phillip M. Bailey

A Texas judge ordered the voting period in Dallas County to be extended until 10 p.m. ET, giving people a two-hour extension after confusion over rule changes resulted in many voters being turned away, USA TODAY has learned.

The judge specifically cited "mass confusion" that was so severe it caused the local election department's website to crash, according to the ruling.

Local Republicans in both Dallas County and Williamson County sought to change the rule and have voters cast ballots only in their home precincts instead of countywide. Both major parties have to agree on how to conduct Texas' primary elections, meaning the decision affects all voters.

"This mishandling lies squarely at the feet of every Republican Party official who refused to work toward joint primaries, but instead peddled election conspiracy theories," Kendall Scudder, chair of the Texas Democratic Party, said in a statement.

It's not clear if hours have also been extended in Williamson County, where there were also reports of Texans being directed to different voting precincts.

Voters turned away in two major Texas counties

Phillip M. Bailey

Both contenders in the Texas Democratic Senate primary are speaking out after reports that some voters in two major counties were turned away from polling places.

Officials in Dallas County and Williamson County, which partially covers Austin's northern suburbs, said rule changes are causing confusion at polling locations, which both Jasmine Crockett and James Talarico have criticized.

Local voters were allowed to cast their ballot anywhere in the county, but Republicans in both areas sought to change the rules this year and require people cast ballots only at their assigned precinct.

Crockett, who hails from Dallas, described the push as "voter suppression." Talarico, whose district includes parts of Austin, is calling for an extension of voting hours and denounced the rule change.

"Even if one person weren't allowed to cast their vote, we should all be standing together – Democrats, Republicans – and we should all be raising hell," Crockett said at a March 3 press conference, joined by former Rep. Colin Allred, of Texas, who dropped out of the Senate race when she entered in December.

Talarico said in a statement to USA TODAY: "We are deeply concerned about the reports of voters being turned away from the polls in Dallas and Williamson counties following the GOP's implementation of precinct-specific voting locations for election day."

Arkansas Senate primary: Who is running?

Kathryn Palmer

Arkansas Republican Sen. Tom Cotton faces a pair of primary challengers on March 3 in his bid to secure his party's nomination for a third term. Cotton is up against two Republican challengers: Micah Asby, a pastor, and Jeb Little, a law enforcement officer.

Democrats are picking between Lewisville Mayor Ethan Dunbar and Hallie Shoffner, a farmer and small business owner.

Texas polls: Where do the candidates stand?

Kathryn Palmer

A Real Clear Politics average of recent polls puts Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in the lead in the state's GOP Senate primary, at 39.2%. Incumbent Sen. John Cornyn falls second at 35.4%, and U.S. Rep. Wesley Hunt trails in third at 15.8%.

On the Democratic side, the polling averages place Texas State Rep. James Talarico in a double-digit lead over U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett, at 52.3% to her 42.3%.

Yet in a recent Emerson College Polling/Nexstar Media survey released on March 1, Talarico had a smaller edge over Crockett at 52%, while the U.S. congresswoman had 47% support.

The Emerson College poll also placed Paxton ahead with 40% approval, compared to Cornyn’s 36%. The poll's margin of error is plus or minus 3.3%.

The big hurdle will be whether the leading candidates on either ticket can clear the 50% threshold needed to avoid a runoff.

Texas House primary erupts into MAGA-off

Kathryn Palmer

North of Houston in the new 2nd congressional district, Republican Rep. Dan Crenshaw is facing multiple primary challengers, including from state Rep. Steve Toth, a conservative who has Sen. Ted Cruz's endorsement.

The Republican primary race has become testy in recent weeks, with both Crenshaw and Toth presenting themselves as the more conservative, MAGA-aligned candidate. Toth split with Crenshaw over the representative's support of a bipartisan immigration enforcement deal during former President Joe Biden's administration.

North Carolina sets up Senate battle

Reuters

In North Carolina, voters will choose the nominees for another critical Senate race, where Republican Thom Tillis' retirement has created a vacant seat in a swing state.

Democrats hope former Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper, who faces token intraparty opposition, can flip the seat in November. The popular Cooper has won statewide six times.

Michael Whatley, a former Republican National Committee chair who boasts Trump's endorsement, has held a sizable lead in public polls over a half-dozen other Republican candidates.

Christian Menefee vs. Al Green in Texas: What to know

Kathryn Palmer

Just last month, 34-year-old Democratic Rep. Christian Menefee won a runoff election in Texas' 18th Congressional District and was sworn into the U.S. House. Now, his name is once again before voters on a ballot, as he goes up against a longtime Democratic lawmaker in a bid to keep his newly won seat beyond 2026.

After Texas' controversial redistricting roped parts of Democratic Rep. Al Green's 9th Congressional District into the 18th, the congressman decided last fall he would run for reelection in the newly reformed district. Green has represented the former 9th district, which had included southern parts of Houston, since 2005 and is a member of the Congressional Black Caucus. The 18th district has a long reputation as a center of Black political power in the state.

Democrat Sylvester Turner, 78, the former mayor of Houston and a longtime Texas state representative, won the seat in the U.S. House of Representatives in November 2024, but died less than two months after being sworn into office. He had won the seat to serve out the remainder of former Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee's term, after she died in July 2024 after nearly 30 years in Congress. The seat has sat empty for more than 12 months over the last two years.

Texas GOP identity at core of Cornyn, Paxton, Hunt's 3-way Senate race

Phillip M. Bailey

It's the old guard versus the insurgent right in Texas, where Senate Republicans are doing all they can to save incumbent John Cornyn's career and keep a reliably red state off the 2026 midterm election map.

Cornyn, 74, is considered an institution in Lone Star State politics, but he is being pummeled by two aggressive, populist-minded challengers in U.S. Rep. Wesley Hunt and scandal-plagued state Attorney General Ken Paxton, who has captured the Make America Great Again spirit.

For conservative voters, one issue seems to rise above the rest: ensuring Democrats don’t take control of the U.S. Senate. If no candidate receives more than 50% support, the race would go to a May 26 runoff, which many experts and strategist expect.

Crockett vs. Talarico is a clash of Democratic styles in Texas primary

Phillip M. Bailey

Of all the Democratic primaries that will decide the party's 2026 congressional candidate slate, none have captured national attention quite like the increasingly bitter March 3 Senate showdown in Texas.

In one corner is James Talarico, a state legislator who exudes a friendly youth pastor vibe as he urges voters to think beyond partisan divisions.

In the other is Jasmine Crockett, a quick-witted member of Congress who adopted a clap-back style aimed President Donald Trump and his allies.

Both candidacies arrive at a time when public approval of the Democratic Party is low, according to a survey released by the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research in February, despite the party's strong performance in recent elections, as opposition to Trump drives Democratic turnout.

When do polls close?

Kathryn Palmer

Here's what to know if you're heading to the ballot box today:

• In North Carolina, polls close at 7:30 p.m. ET.
• In Arkansas, polls close at 7:30 p.m. CT, or 8:30 p.m. ET.
• In Texas, polls close at 7 p.m. CT, or 8 p.m. ET. For the state's few western areas in Mountain time, including El Paso, polls close at 7 p.m. MT − an hour after the rest of the state.