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By Meg Kinnard

July 27, 2026

Sunday marked 100 days until the midterm elections, and while there are still primaries and special elections happening, most of the contests across the country have turned toward the general election. (In South Carolina, I'm gearing up for a two-week sprint for a special Senate primary, but we'll talk more about that on Wednesday.)

In Texas, we take a look at Ken Paxton, the Republican who has withstood years of challenges that might have sidelined others. Now, the question is whether James Talarico will have any more luck as he faces off against Paxton in one of the country's most closely watched Senate races.

Plus, President Donald Trump's trip to Michigan, this week's elections in Georgia and South Dakota and a look at the unusual convention where Troy Jackson secured the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate in Maine.

The Headline

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a Republican candidate for the U.S. Senate, waves as he takes the stage during a primary runoff election night event after winning the Republican party's nomination, May 26, 2026, in Plano, Texas. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

Years of scandals haven't stopped Ken Paxton. Can James Talarico change that? — By Thomas Beaumont

Eight years ago, during a campaign for Texas attorney general, Justin Nelson ran television advertisements with security camera footage of Ken Paxton pocketing an expensive pen that didn't belong to him.

Four years ago, George P. Bush went after Paxton by putting up billboards that said “he's a crook” next to his mugshot from when he was charged with securities fraud. And earlier this year, U.S. Sen John Cornyn said “judgment day is coming” as he tried to fend off a primary challenge from Paxton.

All of them lost.

Paxton has never been convicted and he's managed to survive by championing conservative legal battles over immigration, abortion and transgender issues in a Republican-dominated state. Much like Trump, he's long portrayed himself as the victim of political persecution.

Former Paxton challengers and a half dozen campaign strategists who worked against him warned that Texans may tune out any attempt to revive scandals that they've heard about for years, especially at a time when rigid partisanship has convinced voters to be extraordinarily forgiving of candidates’ trespasses.

However, Talarico's team has studied the previous races and is attempting its own version of the playbook by trying to paint Paxton as part of a broader culture of corruption that has failed to improve people's lives.

Paxton’s campaign suggested Talarico’s claims were aimed at distracting voters from a record of “out-of-touch views.”

Dive deeper ➤

Trump set to visit Michigan to defend economic policies

President Donald Trump tosses a "Trump 2028" hat at the White House Correspondents' Association dinner at the Waldorf Astoria Washington DC, Friday, July 24, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Rod Lamkey, Jr.)

Trump is set to defend his economic policies in Michigan, where new Canadian tariffs may sting — By Will Weissert

Trump plans to tout his handling of the economy during a visit to suburban Detroit on Monday, defending sweeping tariffs in a swing state where their effects have hurt many businesses as midterm election season heats up.

Trump is visiting a General Motors facility in Milford, home to tracks and proving grounds for new models and vehicles. Early voting is underway for Michigan's Aug. 4 primary, which features fierce nomination fights in both parties.

Republican Mike Rogers is unopposed in the Senate primary, but the GOP gubernatorial contest pits Trump-backed Rep. John James against Perry Johnson, a businessman turned politician who has launched unsuccessful campaigns before, including for president in 2024.

Meanwhile, the Democratic Senate primary between Rep. Haley Stevens and progressive Abdul El-Sayed has drawn national attention for the right to face Rogers, who was narrowly defeated by Democrat Sen. Elissa Slotkin in 2024.

Michigan was one of the 2024 battlegrounds Trump flipped after it backed Democrat Joe Biden in 2020. But the state has also seen parts of its economy affected by the president's tariffs, including on imported cars and auto parts.

AP Elections Spotlight: South Dakota runoff & GA-13 special

UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters perform a flyover as Interior Secretary Doug Burgum speaks before President Donald Trump at Mount Rushmore National Memorial, Friday, July 3, 2026, near Keystone, S.D. (AP Photo/Matt Gade)

Voters across South Dakota and in one Georgia congressional district vote on Tuesday to settle on a gubernatorial nominee and pick a successor to a congressman who died in office.

South Dakota shimmy: Republicans will decide in a primary runoff whether to nominate Gov. Larry Rhoden for a full term or to instead tap businessman Toby Doeden to represent the party on the ballot in November. The two were the top vote-getters in the June 2 primary, but neither candidate reached the 35% vote threshold needed to win the nomination outright.

The winner of the runoff will enter the general election against Democratic former state Sen. Dan Ahlers with a significant advantage in the reliably Republican state that hasn’t had a Democratic governor since the 1970s.

Rhoden was lieutenant governor when he assumed the top job in early 2025 after then-Gov. Kristi Noem stepped down to join Trump’s Cabinet

Georgia on my mind: Six candidates in Georgia’s 13th Congressional District will compete in a special election to replace the late Democratic U.S. Rep. David Scott, who died April 22. It's a temporary gig, though; the winner will serve out only the remaining few months of Scott’s current term.

The contest in the heavily Democratic district east and southeast of Atlanta could have an immediate impact on the balance of power in the U.S. House, where Republicans cling to a thin majority.

Under Georgia law, the four Democrats and two Republicans running to succeed Scott will appear on the same ballot, and any of them could secure the seat outright by winning a majority of the special election vote. Otherwise, the top two vote-getters regardless of party will advance to an Aug. 25 special runoff election.

Read more from Robert Yoon on the South Dakota and Georgia contests.

One extraordinary photo

Delegates hold signs at the Maine Democratic Nominating Convention, Saturday, July 25, 2026, in Bangor, Maine. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)

Maine-based photo journalist Robert F. Bukaty was there on Saturday as logger Troy Jackson secured the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate in Maine, a state rocked earlier this month by the withdrawal of nominee Graham Platner following a sexual assault allegation.

The former state lawmaker will face longtime GOP Sen. Susan Collins in November in a race that could decide which party controls the chamber.

Support coalesced around Jackson, a former Maine Senate president and fifth-generation logger from rural northern Maine who campaigned alongside Platner during a failed bid for governor and was a favorite among progressives to replace him.