Trump backs Abbott's down-ballot rivals in Texas GOP primary shakeup

Shaking up the final days of the Texas primary, President Donald Trump has endorsed two GOP candidates opposed by fellow Republican Gov. Greg Abbott.

On his Truth Social platform Friday, Trump backed former state Sen. Don Huffines of Dallas for comptroller and Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller for reelection, calling each a “MAGA warrior” who has “been with me since the very beginning.”

Abbott has spent millions in ads boosting acting Comptroller Kelly Hancock and agriculture businessman Nate Sheets, who is challenging Miller. A recent TV spot urges Republicans to “vote Abbott and Hancock to keep Texas safe and strong.”

Abbott has had friction with Huffines, who ran against him for governor in 2022, and with Miller, whose tenure he has called an “utter failure.”

The Trump endorsement against Abbott’s favored candidates injects fresh tension into the campaign’s closing stretch and tests the governor’s sway with the party’s base.

Still, at an event Friday in Corpus Christi, Trump described Abbott, who is seeking reelection this year, as “one of the great governors of our country”

“He’s an unbelievable guy, a tremendous friend of mine, and he is something very special,” Trump said. “He’s tough as hell. I want to tell you, you think he’s a nice guy, you’re wrong. He’s tough. He’s mean. But it’s all for you.”