FILE PHOTO: Rep. Wesley Hunt, who is running for a U.S. Senate seat in Texas, at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, U.S., July 15, 2024. REUTERS/Mike Segar/File Photo
Big-money Republican donors are absolutely livid that a MAGA Republican lawmaker jumped late into the primary to challenge incumbent Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX), even after they asked him not to.
Rep. Wesley Hunt's 11th-hour plunge into the hotly contested Republican Senate race has left the state's GOP establishment in turmoil, The New York Times reported Tuesday ahead of what's expected to be a tight primary contest.
"No matter what happens tonight, some of Senator John Cornyn’s establishment donors are seething at Representative Wesley Hunt, the late entrant into the Republican Senate race in Texas," noted campaign finance reporter Theodore Schleifer.
"Hunt’s presence has made a costly and challenging runoff election more likely for Cornyn. Some major Republican donors were so concerned that when Hunt called to tell them he was exploring entering the Senate race, they told him not to do so, according to two people familiar with the conversations. He did anyway."
The race has been headlines multiple times this year.
Hunt, a close ally of President Donald Trump, recently filed a police report after Cornyn's senior aide shared an image of Hunt's 2016 provisional ballot. The Harris County Constable’s Office confirmed the report was filed. Hunt said that the image of his ballot had revealed personal information about himself and his family.