GOA Endorses Ken Paxton for Senate

Texas Sen. John Cornyn isn’t exactly on the short list for favorite lawmakers by gun rights supporters. His key role in getting the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act through the Senate is a big reason why, and in a state that values the Second Amendment, that doesn’t seem like a recipe for career longevity.

But, then again, Cornyn’s been in office for a while. He knows where bodies are buried (metaphorically, if not literally) and he knows how to get the best people for his campaign.

He might survive.

Enter Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who is primarying Cornyn in the 2026 election, and he’s already picked up one big endorsement.

From a press release:

Gun Owners of America (GOA) is proud to announce its endorsement of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton for the United States Senate. A proven constitutional conservative, Paxton has spent years standing shoulder to shoulder with GOA in the fight to defend the Second Amendment against unconstitutional gun control. 

Throughout his time as Attorney General, Paxton has worked directly with GOA in federal lawsuits challenging the Biden administration’s gun control agenda, including the ATF’s unlawful pistol brace ban and the so-called “universal registration rule.” These lawsuits successfully secured preliminary injunctions for GOA members and Texans, blocking unconstitutional enforcement across the country. 

GOA also applauds Paxton’s leadership in challenging the ATF’s suppressor regulations and new rules targeting private sales and gun show transactions. At every turn, Paxton has proven that he is willing to take the fight to federal bureaucrats and stand firm in defense of the Constitution. 

Gun Owners of America encourages all Texans to support Ken Paxton in the upcoming March 3, 2026, Republican primary and send a clear message to Washington: our Second Amendment is not up for negotiation. 

Tim Macy, Chairman of the Board of Directors for Gun Owners of America, issued the following statement: 

“Ken Paxton is exactly the kind of leader gun owners need in the U.S. Senate. He doesn’t flinch, he doesn’t compromise, and he doesn’t apologize for standing up for the Constitution. GOA is proud to stand with Ken, just as he has stood with us in every major legal battle of the past several years.” 

Erich Pratt, Senior Vice President of Gun Owners of America, issued the following statement: 

“Ken Paxton has earned an A+ rating from GOA because he has never betrayed gun owners. From the courtroom to the campaign trail, he has shown unwavering resolve in the fight for our Second Amendment rights. Texans deserve a Senator who will confront the gun control agenda head-on; not work with it like John Cornyn.” 

I mean, really.

Now, Paxton isn’t without his 2A issues. He’s currently defending gun-free zones in Texas despite saying they’re complete BS. He’s doing it by arguing about standing, which seems kind of idiotic to me. If he wants the law gone, he could just ignore standing and let the challenge continue. No one else is really going to effectively bring that up.

But he did.

Still, there’s really no argument in my mind that arguing standing in a case about gun-free zones comes secondary to something like the BSCA’s passage.

And understand something, this is very early for an endorsement like this to come through. This is for a 2026 election, which means there’s a ton of time for candidates to enter the race, some potentially even better options than Paxton.

What this does is send a clear signal to Cornyn that there will be rallying behind his challenger after he betrayed gun owners like he did.

This is what I want to see. I’ve been saying that those who refuse to defend the Second Amendment in the halls of Congress or the state legislatures should be forced to defend that in their campaigns.

This also means that we need to rally behind challengers with our time and treasure to make sure they have every chance to win and remind politicians that they work for us. Taking our rights for granted isn’t a winning idea.