Trump Faces Protests at Texas Rally for Senate Candidate Ken Paxton

US President Donald Trump faced repeated protests during a campaign rally in Texas on Thursday as he campaigned for Republican Senate candidate Ken Paxton ahead of next month’s midterm elections.

Trump addressed a packed crowd at the Freeman Coliseum as he sought to help Republicans prevent major Democratic gains in Texas, the country’s most populous reliably Republican-leaning state.

During his speech, Trump pledged to award retired baseball star Roger Clemens the Presidential Medal of Freedom. He also reiterated his support for imposing the death penalty on drug traffickers.

Trump also sought to explain recent remarks in which he warned that Iran could launch bomb attacks on US cities. Addressing rising energy prices, he said that paying more for fuel because of the war was a “small price” to pay.

Paxton, however, was not a central presence throughout Trump’s speech.

The president was repeatedly interrupted by protesters during the rally. At least a dozen demonstrators disrupted his remarks, with one seen near the stage. Several protesters were removed from the venue by police.

At one point, Trump stepped away from the microphone for several moments because of the disruption.

Texas is the most populous and one of the most reliably Republican states in the United States. Trump won the state by nearly 14 percentage points in the 2024 presidential election. However, with less than a month remaining before the election, analysts say Republicans are facing a more challenging political environment amid declining support for Trump, the war with Iran and rising energy prices.

Thursday’s rally marked Trump’s third visit to Texas in less than a month. Republicans have so far spent more than $300 million on the state’s elections.

Republican Governor Greg Abbott was notably absent from the rally. Analysts have viewed his absence as a possible sign of the political challenges facing Trump and the Republican Party.

Abbott, a three-term governor, won re-election by a wide margin in 2022. He is now seeking another term and faces Democratic state Representative Gina Hinojosa in the November 3 gubernatorial election.

Rather than attending Trump’s rally, Abbott was scheduled to attend the opening of a hospital about 330 miles away. His absence drew criticism from Democrats.

Texas Democratic Party spokesperson Jacob Long said Abbott had never hesitated to support Trump over the years and had called him a “close friend” while backing his agenda.

“But now, with Texas families facing record-high costs because of Trump’s tariffs and war with Iran, suddenly Greg Abbott has somewhere else to be,” Long said.