Cornyn says he won't vote for Texas Republican Bo French after controversial post

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.

Cornyn said he was unsure whether he would vote for Democratic candidate Jon Rosenthal: "I may just leave it blank."

French on Sunday posted to social media an image showing a group of students celebrating Texas' upset win over Ohio State. Many among them are students of color.

"I heard UT graduation this year looked like this. I didn’t believe it. The problem is now obviously far worse than anyone imagined," French said, referring to the students in the photo.

"I cheered the win for the team. It was a great game. 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.

It’s not clear whether any of the students in the photo were international students.

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.

Furthermore, there are fewer than 2,000 international students at UT Austin, making up 4.3% of the more than 44,000 students enrolled in total, according to the university's 2025-26 admissions data.

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.

"The GOP’s stables need a cleaning. This is a good place to start," Rove wrote.

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.

"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.