Trump's humiliating loss in Texas

Donald Trump experienced an intriguing setback in the Lone Star State when the candidate he endorsed in the GOP primary, aiming to unseat the Texas House Speaker, lost in a runoff election on May 28th.

Texas House Speaker Dade Phelan has been at odds with Trump ever since he led the effort to impeach Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in 2023 according to Newsweek. But Trump’s efforts to oust Phelan from office have failed. 

The impeachment of Paxton was a messy political affair but he was ultimately acquitted of all charges levied against him by the Texas State Senate, though Paxton did not take the win with grace after his acquittal. 

Paxton was accused of improperly using the powers of his office in order to protect one of his political donors, and major real estate developer, Nate Paul from being indicted on federal charges according to Newsweek. 

Why Trump got involved in the rather localized political spat isn’t difficult to sort out. Ken Paxton is a well-known supporter of the former president’s 2020 election claims. Paxton filed federal lawsuits on Trump’s behalf, CNN reported. 

The Supreme Court eventually threw out Paxton’s lawsuits but that didn’t stop him from attending the January 6th, 2021 ‘Stop the Steal’ rally that came just before Trump’s fans stormed the U.S. Capital and caused a national crisis. 

Unseating an individual who attacked such an ardent Trump loyalist would seem like the right move for the former president and that is likely why Trump opted to endorse David Covey in Texas’s House District 21 race in January. 

“David is an America First Conservative who will Secure the Border, Restore Election Integrity, Protect our Families and Military/Vets, and Defend our under siege Second Amendment,” Trump wrote on Truth Social Covey according to The Texas Tribune.  

Trump continued injecting himself into the race to push for Phelan’s ouster. A weird video message posted to Truth Social on May 25th saw him say Phelan was “ bad, bad, bad for the Republican Party and democracy” adding he needed to be “beaten badly.” 

Photo Credit: Screenshot Truth Social @realDonaldTrump

On May 27th, Trump took to Truth Social to give Covey a final push with a message that made it clear he wanted the voters of House District 21 to oust Dade Phelan from office for his role in the impeachment of Ken Paxton. 

Photo Credit: Facebook @CoveyTX

“David Covey is running against Dade Phelan, the Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives, who led the Fraudulent Impeachment of the recently re-elected, Attorney General of Texas, Ken Paxton,” Trump wrote. 

Photo Credit: Screenshot Truth Social @realDonaldTrump

“David is an America First Conservative who will Secure the Border, Restore Election Integrity, Protect our Families and Military/Vets, and Defend our under siege Second Amendment,” Trump added. “David Covey has my Complete and Total Endorsement.”

Photo Credit: Facebook @CoveyTX

The former president’s endorsement didn’t help Covey beat Phelan in the end. But the situation did look very close for some time. Phelan beat Covey 50.7% to 49.3% based on an unofficial vote count reported by Amarillo Globe-News.

“Tonight, I am immensely grateful to the voters of Southeast Texas, who have spoken loud and clear: in Southeast Texas, we set our own course—our community is not for sale, and our values are not up for auction,” Phelan said in a statement. 

“I owe a profound debt of gratitude to every voter and volunteer whose relentless dedication turned that vision into tonight’s resounding victory," Phelan added. But Phelan’s win was a major defeat for Paxton and Trump. 

Paxton responded to Phelan’s win by posting a long-winded message to X calling for the state to close its primaries and claiming that the Democrats got him elected again. Trump has yet to respond but he may not after such an embarrassing loss. 

Never miss a story! Click here to follow The Daily Digest.