Outgoing Senator John Cornyn announced he would not vote for Bo French, a Republican candidate running for Texas railroad commissioner, due to French's recent social media post deemed racist. Karl Rove, a GOP strategist and former adviser to President George W. Bush, also stated that he wouldn’t vote for French. The controversy centers around French’s criticism of the diversity at UT Austin's graduation ceremony, which he claimed favored non-Texas residents, including international students, though Texas law mandates 90% of spots for state residents.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-09-18,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
Outgoing Republican Senator John Cornyn of Texas announced on Thursday that he would not vote for Bo French, a candidate running for Texas railroad commissioner, due to "racist comments" made by French. These remarks have faced strong criticism from lawmakers. Cornyn stated in an interview with the Washington Examiner that French's behavior is an embarrassment to the Republican Party and could harm the party’s statewide election prospects.
French had shared on social media a photo of students celebrating Texas' upset win over Ohio State at their graduation, describing it as evidence of a "problem" concerning student demographics. The controversial post led prominent figures like Cornyn and GOP strategist Karl Rove to distance themselves from French, indicating their reluctance to support him in the upcoming election.
The Texas railroad commissioner role is significant as it oversees regulation for oil and natural gas production within the state. Despite his criticism of French, Cornyn expressed uncertainty about voting for Jon Rosenthal, a Democratic candidate, stating he might leave that part blank on the ballot.
Written for “Texas Senate Race Controversy” on 2026-09-18,
grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.
Why this leaning score
The model judged this article politically coded and scored it -0.35, but all 3 of its quote(s) are attributed speech - words the article quotes from someone, not the article's own narration, so the score is not published.
Written under an earlier scoring contract, which gave a paragraph
rather than checkable quotes. Re-analysing this article replaces it.
Leaning score withheld for article 17258: attributed speech only · logged 2026-09-18
Cornyn says he won't vote for Texas Republican Bo French after candidate's controversial post
GOP strategist Karl Rove also said he wouldn't vote for French.
asserted
he → say → French
Outgoing Republican Sen. John Cornyn of Texas said Thursday that he would not vote for Bo French for Texas railroad commissioner following the candidate's "racist comments," which have drawn intense pushback from lawmakers.
"He's an embarrassment to the Republican Party, and he's going to drag the whole ticket down because of his racist comments," Cornyn told the Washington Examiner of French, who is running to be Texas' rail commissioner, a statewide position that regulates the state's oil and natural gas production.
asserted
that → say → production
Cornyn said he was unsure whether he would vote for Democratic candidate Jon Rosenthal: "I may just leave it blank."
uncertain
I → say → it
French on Sunday posted to social media an image showing a group of students celebrating Texas' upset win over Ohio State.
asserted
French → post → State
"I heard UT graduation this year looked like this.
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graduation → hear → this
I didn’t believe it.
asserted
I → believe → it
The problem is now obviously far worse than anyone imagined," French said, referring to the students in the photo.
asserted
French → imagine → photo
"I cheered the win for the team.
asserted
I → cheer → team
But I weep for the families in Texas who can’t get into UT because they prioritize foreigners over Texans," French later added to his post.
asserted
French → weep → post
It’s not clear whether any of the students in the photo were international students.
asserted
any → ’ → photo
Texas law mandates UT Austin reserve 90% of its undergraduate spots for Texas residents, and that the university "may not offer admission to first-time undergraduate students who are not residents of this state," including international students, beyond 10% of enrollment.
uncertain
who → mandate → enrollment
Several lawmakers have denounced French's post, arguing French’s claims are directly racist.
Republican Strategist Karl Rove, who served as an adviser to President George W. Bush, condemned the comments in a Wall Street Journal op-ed on Wednesday, saying he would be voting for French's Democratic opponent in the election for railroad commissioner.
uncertain
he → denounce → commissioner
"The GOP’s stables need a cleaning.
asserted
stables → need → cleaning
This is a good place to start," Rove wrote.
asserted
Rove → start → ?
The Republican Party of Texas has largely stayed silent on its candidate and did not respond to ABC News' request for comment; French's campaign also did not respond to an ABC News request for comment.
asserted
campaign → stay → comment
"Mocking or criticizing a crowd because of the way people look is not just offensive, it is fundamentally at odds with the values that make America what it is," Texas Democratic Party Chairman Kendall Scudder said.
asserted
Scudder → mock → values
Texas Democrats went on to criticize the state Republican Party's silence, and the lack of pushback from Texas Gov. Greg Abbott.
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Democrats → go → Abbott
The governor did not immediately respond for comment when asked by ABC News.
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governor → respond → News
Cornyn had earlier called on Republicans in the state to call out French for his comments.
asserted
Cornyn → call → comments
"Are other Republican elected officials going to condemn the intolerance and racism, or look the other way while it becomes normalized," Cornyn wrote in a social media post on Sunday.
asserted
Cornyn → elect → Sunday
"This is how great political parties self-destruct.
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parties → destruct → ?
Cornyn later said in a post that the "Republican Party is better than this.
asserted
Party → say → this
We should all condemn this bigotry directed at our fellow Texans or we will soon find ourselves a minority party."
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ourselves → condemn → Texans
Other prominent lawmakers joined Cornyn in denouncing French's post, including Republican Texas House Speaker Dustin Burrows.
asserted
lawmakers → join → Burrows
"You can oppose immigration policy without demeaning people because of their race or ethnicity -- this post has crossed the line," Burrows said.
asserted
Burrows → oppose → line
French responded to criticism online, claiming that the "radical left and their allies” were attacking him, promoting his campaign's fundraising website.
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left → respond → website
French, speaking on a conservative radio broadcast on Monday, doubled down on his posts.
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French → speak → posts
"I don’t have anything against the people specifically in that picture," French said.
asserted
I → have → picture
"I think that the bigger conversation is, are we going to have policies to prioritize Americans … or are we going to have policies that prioritize foreigners?
asserted
that → think → foreigners
And I think most people in the America First movement think we ought to be prioritizing Americans."
asserted
we → think → Americans
The Aporia
