A group of prominent Texas Republicans is breaking ranks in the race for U.S. Senate. Neil Bush, brother of former President George W. Bush, along with former state representative Bennett Ratliff and others, are publicly supporting Democrat James Talarico over Attorney General Ken Paxton. Ratliff pointed to a lesson from his father and grandfather: integrity is what you do when nobody is watching. Former House Speaker Dade Phelan hasn’t endorsed Talarico, but he’s sitting the race out entirely.

The polling still shows Paxton with a firm grip on the base, holding 90% of Republicans compared to Talarico’s 98% among Democrats. But political watchers say Paxton needs to keep at least 95% of his own party to win statewide. President Trump has campaigned repeatedly for Paxton and says the race is close, while the RNC chairman dismisses the crossover endorsements as wishful thinking from the other side.

For voters here in Ellis County, the bigger question is what these defections signal. Texas hasn’t sent a Democrat to the U.S. Senate in decades, and every high-profile Republican who steps away chips at that history. With Senate control on the line nationally, what happens in the Lone Star State could matter well beyond our courthouse square.

What do you think? Would a defection like this change your vote, or is party still the deciding factor? Let us know on our Facebook page.