Ken Paxton Says Trump’s Dallas Convention ‘Dropped Our Numbers,’ Audio Shows

Texas Attorney General and Republican Senate candidate Ken Paxton privately told conservative donors that President Donald Trump’s two-day midterms convention in Dallas “dropped our numbers,” according to an audio recording obtained by The New York Times. The comments, made at a Capitol Hill meeting, add to scrutiny of the unconventional summit as the closely watched Texas Senate race tightens.

In the recording, an attendee asked Paxton, apparently referring to Trump, “Do you feel like he's a little bit of a drag?” Paxton replied, “So to be honest with you, the numbers — when we did that convention — it dropped our numbers. Everybody's numbers dropped. Right now, yeah, not good.”

Paxton is battling Democratic state lawmaker James Talarico for a seat that has long been considered safely Republican. Talarico has gained momentum on the campaign trail and outraised Paxton by a wide margin, while Paxton’s campaign has faced questions tied to legal and political controversies.

Trump cracked a series of unkind jokes about Paxton's appearance during the convention, hardly helping his cause (Reuters)

Paxton’s senior adviser Nick Maddux pushed back on the reporting, telling The New York Times the audio was being misrepresented and calling it “manipulated nonsense.” Maddux said a recent poll showed Paxton leading by three points and argued the campaign’s numbers had improved since early September. “Ken Paxton is going to win this race, and he looks forward to closing strong alongside President Trump,” Maddux added.

Trump, who headlined the convention at the American Airlines Center on Sept. 9–10, publicly insisted the event helped Paxton despite poking fun at the attorney general’s appearance onstage. “The convention helped Ken Paxton a lot,” the former president said after the summit.

Convention Problems and Political Fallout

Critics said the two-day event — widely nicknamed “Trumpapalooza” — suffered from logistical and optics problems that may have undercut its political goal. Media reports highlighted empty seats at the arena, video-screen glitches, scheduling clashes with NFL broadcasts, high fees charged to GOP lawmakers to attend, and poor timing that coincided with the approach of the 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks.

Paxton is running against Democratic challenger James Talarico, who has performed impressively on the campaign trail and raised vastly more money than his scandal-blighted rival (AFP/Getty)

Organizers also faced awkward moments onstage, including jokes at Paxton’s expense and a dispute over whether Housing and Urban Development Secretary Scott Turner had tapped Rep. Anna Paulina Luna as they passed. Those incidents fed coverage suggesting the event energized attention across the political spectrum rather than delivering a purely Republican boost.

Polling Signals

Analysts point to aggregated and individual polls for evidence of the convention’s mixed impact. The RealClearPolitics Generic Congressional Vote average moved in favor of Democrats after the Dallas event, showing Democrats at 50.5% versus Republicans at 42.1% — a noticeable shift from early September. A Hill/Emerson poll found 59% of conservatives said the event galvanized them to vote, while 53% of liberals reported feeling similarly energized.

As the campaign enters its final stretch, the Paxton-Talarico race will be watched as a potential bellwether for national trends and for whether high-profile political spectacles help or hinder the candidates they are meant to boost.

Key Quote: “So to be honest with you, the numbers — when we did that convention — it dropped our numbers,” — Ken Paxton (audio obtained by The New York Times)