The annual Conservative Political Action Conference, or CPAC, has wrapped in Grapevine, Texas. The event included speeches from Texas officials — including Gov. Greg Abbott, Attorney General Ken Paxton and Sen. Mayes Middleton — all current candidates for statewide office.
Gov. Greg Abbott speaks to guests inside the main ballroom at the 2026 Conservative Political Action Conference in Grapevine, Texas on Thursday, March 26, 2026. While the Conservative Political Action Conference has left Texas, the messaging from the influential annual event will shape Republican priorities moving forward.
This was CPAC’s first time back in the Lone Star State since 2022 when they hosted it in Dallas. Topics at this year’s convention included everything from the midterms and Marxism in schools to family values and foreign policy. Thousands of conference goers watched as panels with titles like"K-Pop Communist Hunters" and"Cigars, Steaks, and Ivermectin: A MAHA Survival Guide" graced the main stage. But several recurring topics dominated the event: The U.S. and Israel-led war in Iran, conservatives’ concerns about growing Muslim influence in the country, and the looming Republican U.S. Senate runoff between the CPAC favorite, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, and incumbent Sen. John Cornyn.A woman wearing a “Make Iran Great Again” hat speaks with a reporter while a woman nearby can be seen holding a poster of Reza Pahlavi at CPAC.attendees. Throughout the convention, they could be seen wearing themed hats and shirts, with some draping Iranian flags over their shoulders like capes. Others wore hats and held signs that read “Make Iran Great Again” or declared support for Pahlavi, who is seen as a unifying figure who’s positioned himself to lead a transition of power in Iran, was a featured speaker at CPAC in Texas. “Unlike the regime that worships death and destruction, the Iranian people celebrate life and liberty,” Pahlavi told the crowd Saturday. “That’s why I can imagine an Iran that exports engineers instead of extremists.”, attendee Kayvon Nia told The Texas Newsroom, “Unfortunately, it’s necessary because that regime — 47 years — they kill people, they kill innocent people.” Still, several CPAC attendees said they’d rather not have the United States be involved in a long war. More than one mentioned President Donald Trump’s election night speech where he said he was, “not going to start a war.” ‘I don’t particularly want another great war on terror, where we’re over there for 20, 25 years,” said Tyler Bertola, who came to CPAC from Austin, where she runs a literary and entertainment agency.The next most talked about topic at CPAC was the worry about the growth of a “radical Islamist” movement in America. The conference came to Texas amid a backdrop ofGov. Greg Abbott speaking to the audience at CPAC while sitting next to Sen. Bryan Hughes .— a move he said came in response to President Barack Obama’s attempt to place Syrian refugees in Texas after thePaxton, who’s running for U.S. Senate, also spoke during CPAC’s Ronald Reagan dinner auction on Saturday night, a fundraising event that included a bedazzled sweater selling for $25,000. Paxton opened his speech highlighting the fact that his opponent, longtime incumbent Sen. John Cornyn, was not in attendance at the convention. While both Republicans were invited to the conference ahead of their May runoff for the party’s U.S. Senate nomination, Cornyn cited his busy schedule in D.C. as his reason for declining.“Let’s take the whole 40 plus years of John Cornyn’s career and let me ask you a question: Can anybody in the room name one good accomplishment in 40 plus years?” Paxton asked the crowd, who either stayed quiet or yelled “No!” CPAC later officially endorsed Paxton in the runoff. That comes as no surprise since the group’s candidate rating system puts him at“We need Ken Paxton,” J.D. Enright told The Texas Newsroom. “No offense to John Cornyn, but he’s been doing that for a long time and where are we?” Yet not everyone was so certain. While most attendees interviewed for this story thought Paxton was the more conservative candidate, some also believed his legal and ethical issues — including his past impeachment as Texas Attorney General — could make him a weaker U.S. Senate candidate in the general election. “Paxton has done a lot of good in this state but he’s got a lot of baggage,” said Billy Guynup. He added that, while he believes Cornyn has traditionally been a supporter of President Trump, the incumbent is still “missing the boat here in Texas.” Ultimately, though, Guynup told The Texas Newsroom he plans to vote for whoever will be the best to keep Texas red.
CPAC Donald Trump Greg Abbott Iran John Cornyn Ken Paxton MIGA Make Iran Great Again Mayes Middleton
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