Ken Paxton says Greg Abbott is 'struggling' in leaked audio
Texas Attorney General's remarks suggest Republicans may lose legislative seats, according to reports.
AI-assisted coverage comparison, editor-supervised · How this was made
Ken Paxton says Greg Abbott is 'struggling' in leaked audio
Photograph: IBTimes UK (embedded from source)
What this story says
- Leaked audio attributed to Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton states Governor Greg Abbott is 'struggling' in his reelection bid.
- Paxton also reportedly conceded that Republicans may lose seats in the Texas Legislature.
- Polling data from a University of Texas/Texas Politics Project poll shows Democrat James Talarico leading Paxton by 50% to 47% and Democrat Gina Hinojosa leading Abbott by 49% to 48%.
- The leaked audio was reportedly obtained by Rolling Stone from a fundraiser on September 24.
Who covered it
Percentages are shares of the 6 outlets carrying a published leaning rating. Coverage measured .
Trust
60/100
Craft
60/100
Hype
45/100
6 sources · methodology
Thin on the right so far
None of the 6 outlets with a published leaning rating that ran this story are rated right.
This story is still being watched, so it is a count and not yet a finding. Coverage keeps arriving for hours after an event, and a side that has published nothing this morning may publish by tonight. If it is still true when we stop checking, we will say so plainly.
Leaked audio attributed to Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton suggests Governor Greg Abbott is struggling in his reelection bid. The recording, reportedly from a fundraiser on September 24, also includes Paxton conceding that Republicans might lose seats in the Texas Legislature. Polling data from a University of Texas/Texas Politics Project poll indicates tight races for both the governor and US Senate positions.
Divergent accounts of poll results
IBTimes UK reported that a University of Texas/Texas Politics Project poll showed Democrat James Talarico leading Paxton by 50% to 47% and Democrat Gina Hinojosa leading Abbott by 49% to 48%. These leads fall within the poll's margin of error, meaning they do not establish a statistically clear advantage for either Democrat. IBTimes UK also noted that the same poll's generic legislative ballot showed Republicans at 49% and Democrats at 48%, also within the margin of error, which does not support a definitive prediction of Republicans losing legislative seats. Newsweek, however, presented a broader range of polling data for the governor's race, including a Marist University poll showing Abbott ahead 49% to 45%, a ReconMR/Siena Research Institute poll with Abbott up 1 point (48% to 47%), and a University of Massachusetts Lowell/YouGov poll with Abbott ahead 48% to 44%. Newsweek also cited two polls where Hinojosa narrowly led, including the University of Texas/YouGov poll (49% to 48%).
What the coverage left out
None of the left or centre-rated reports mentioned the University of Texas/Texas Politics Project poll's finding that inflation and higher prices were the most frequently cited leading problem facing Texas, named by 21% of respondents, with political corruption or leadership following at 15%. This detail was present in the full report from IBTimes UK.
Still developing. We have re-checked which outlets are covering this 4 times, most recently on 14 Oct 2026, 18:45, and will add the sides that appear.
How other outlets pictured it
Which photograph to run is each newsroom’s own choice. The leaning beside a name is that outlet’s published rating, not a claim that the pictures divide along it. Every picture is shown from the outlet’s own server and links to the article it ran in.
How each side covered it
Our own reading of the reporting listed below, written from the outlets’ articles rather than quoted from them. The reasoning is set out on our methodology page.
Left
5 rated outlets
- Five left-rated reports focused on Ken Paxton's remarks about Governor Greg Abbott struggling and the potential for Republican legislative losses. IBTimes UK highlighted Paxton's statement that Abbott is 'struggling' and noted the tight races shown in a University of Texas/Texas Politics Project poll, while also cautioning that the leaked audio and poll data did not definitively prove broader Republican losses. OK! Magazine and Joe.My.God. used digests to report that Paxton complained about Abbott's 'struggling' campaign and conceded potential legislative seat losses. Raw Story's digest stated Paxton 'stuns with poison arrow aimed at fellow Republican' and reported his comments on Abbott being 'in trouble.' Mediaite's digest reported Paxton 'admits Greg Abbott’s reelection bid ‘struggling’.'
Centre
1 rated outlet
- Newsweek's centre-rated report led with the headline 'Greg Abbott is "struggling" Ken Paxton warns: What Texas polls show.' It detailed Paxton's comments about Abbott 'struggling' and Republicans likely losing legislative seats. The report provided extensive polling data for the governor's race from multiple sources, including the University of Texas/YouGov poll, and contrasted Abbott's spending with that of Democrat Gina Hinojosa. It also included statements from Hinojosa and noted other leaked audio clips involving Paxton.
Right
0 rated outlets
No outlet rated right has run this story so far. We are still checking, and will say plainly if that does not change.
Questions about this coverage
- How did the left and right cover Ken Paxton says Greg Abbott is 'struggling' in leaked audio?
- Of the 6 outlets on this story carrying a published leaning rating, 83% are rated left, 17% are rated centre, 0% are rated right. Those percentages are shares of the rated outlets, not of every outlet that ran it. The sections above set out what each side emphasised, in its own terms.
- Is Ken Paxton says Greg Abbott is 'struggling' in leaked audio left or right?
- Too few of the outlets on this story carry a published leaning rating to say. 6 of them do, and this site does not characterise a field under 12: at that size one newsroom filing moves the share by ten points. The percentages above are the count as it stands.
- Is the coverage of Ken Paxton says Greg Abbott is 'struggling' in leaked audio biased?
- Ken Paxton says Greg Abbott is 'struggling' in leaked audio is one event reported by 6 outlets, and this page does not rate the story as biased or unbiased. What it publishes is the spread: which outlets ran it, where named rating organisations place each of them on the spectrum, and what each side chose to lead with. A leaning rating describes an outlet's record over time, not this article, and the two should not be run together.
- Which side is not reporting Ken Paxton says Greg Abbott is 'struggling' in leaked audio?
- When we first saw this story, outlets rated right had barely covered it. Coverage accretes for hours after an event, so that is where to look rather than a verdict — the split above is the current count, and it is the one to read.
- Which outlets covered Ken Paxton says Greg Abbott is 'struggling' in leaked audio?
- 6 that we know of, every one of them listed further up this page with a link to its own report and to what we hold on the publisher. Nothing here is a summary of somebody else's summary: the outlets are named so the original reporting can be read.
- What was revealed in the leaked audio attributed to Ken Paxton?
- Leaked audio attributed to Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton reportedly states that Governor Greg Abbott is 'struggling' in his reelection bid. Paxton also allegedly conceded that Republicans might lose seats in the Texas Legislature. The audio was reportedly obtained by Rolling Stone from a fundraiser on September 24.
- What do the polls show about the Texas governor and Senate races?
- Polling data from a University of Texas/Texas Politics Project poll shows tight races. Democrat James Talarico was reportedly leading Republican Ken Paxton by 50% to 47% in the US Senate race, and Democrat Gina Hinojosa was leading Governor Greg Abbott by 49% to 48% in the governor's race. Both leads fall within the poll's margin of error.
- Which outlets reported on the leaked audio?
- The story was reported by IBTimes UK, Newsweek, OK! Magazine, Joe.My.God., Raw Story, and Mediaite. Of these, IBTimes UK and Newsweek provided full reports, while the others published digests of the story.
Read it at the source
6 outlets, grouped by the leaning a published rating gives them. Every headline links to the original; an underlined outlet name opens our profile of that publisher.
Left
5- New Leaked Audio Catches Ken Paxton Saying Greg Abbott Is 'Struggling' and GOP Could Lose Texas Seats (opens IBTimes UK in a new tab)
IBTimes UK — is IBTimes UK biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Ken Paxton Talks Gov. Greg Abbott's 'Struggling' Campaign in Bombshell Leaked Audio: Listen (opens OK! Magazine in a new tab)
OK! Magazine — is OK! Magazine biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Paxton Bemoans His Campaign Issues In New Audio (opens Joe.My.God. in a new tab)
Joe.My.God. — is Joe.My.God. biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Ken Paxton stuns with poison arrow aimed at fellow Republican in newly leaked audio (opens Raw Story in a new tab)
- Ken Paxton Admits Greg Abbott’s Reelection Bid ‘Struggling’ in New Leaked Audio Clip (opens Mediaite in a new tab)
Centre
1Right
0No outlet in this group ran the story.
Not rated
0No outlet in this group ran the story.
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