Donald Trump used a rally in San Antonio to urge Texas voters to support Republican Senate nominee Ken Paxton, as repeated protests interrupted his speech and highlighted the political pressure facing the party in the state.
Speaking at the Freeman Coliseum on Wednesday night, the president told supporters to “pretend I’m on the ballot” and portrayed the contest as crucial to Republican efforts to retain control of Congress. The event marked his third visit to Texas in less than a month, underlining the importance the party is attaching to a race once expected to be comfortably Republican. ([fox7austin.com](https://www.fox7austin.com/live-blog/news/trump-san-antonio-rally-ken-paxton))
Paxton, the Texas attorney general, is facing Democratic state representative James Talarico in November. Polling has shown Talarico with a narrow lead, prompting Trump and senior Republicans to devote increasing attention and resources to the contest. ([axios.com](https://www.axios.com/local/san-antonio/2026/10/08/san-antonio-president-trump-rally-ken-paxton))
The rally was repeatedly disrupted by demonstrators. At least half a dozen protesters interrupted Trump during his remarks, with police escorting several from the venue as the crowd responded with boos and chants of “USA”.
At one point, Trump stepped away from the microphone before mocking a protester, saying: “He’s going back home to mom. But what he doesn’t know is his mom voted for Trump.” He later described the demonstrators as “really bad-looking people”. ([apnews.com](https://apnews.com/article/cd12a03fd2a900699459678c3a77dd22))
Paxton used his appearance to attack Talarico, leading supporters in a chant of “Where is Talarico?” and claiming his rival had not been seen campaigning in Texas for 11 days.
Talarico’s campaign said he had been suffering from flu and was expected to return to the campaign trail at the weekend. Spokesman JT Ennis said Talarico had held more than 100 public events before falling ill, while accusing Paxton of answering to wealthy donors rather than Texas voters. ([foxnews.com](https://www.foxnews.com/politics/ken-paxton-calls-james-talarico-11-day-absence-trump-rally-prompting-response-campaign))
Trump also praised Paxton’s record and criticised Talarico’s positions on immigration, public safety and education. Paxton told the crowd the election was about “the constitutional republic, freedom, the Bill of Rights”, rather than simply a contest between Republicans and Democrats. ([foxnews.com](https://www.foxnews.com/politics/ken-paxton-calls-james-talarico-11-day-absence-trump-rally-prompting-response-campaign))
The event also featured former baseball pitcher Roger Clemens, who was brought on stage after Trump announced that he would receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Trump called the seven-time Cy Young winner “maybe the greatest pitcher of all time” and renewed his support for Clemens’ induction into the Baseball Hall of Fame. ([apnews.com](https://apnews.com/article/2eaf5ec5a1a31e0e37ec82c0f65764aa))
