Bo French, a Texas Republican running for the Texas Railroad Commissi...

The story

Texas Republican candidate Beau French is facing sharp criticism after posting an image of Asian students at a University of Texas football game and suggesting they are "a problem." The incident has heightened tensions among Texas Republicans during an already competitive midterm election season.

French, who unseated an incumbent in this year's primary to run for a seat on the state's oil and gas regulator, the Texas Railroad Commission, shared a screen grab from a video on the Texas Longhorns official X account. The candidate has previously been criticized by members of both political parties for using inflammatory rhetoric online.

The post drew condemnation from Republican Speaker of the Texas House Dustin Burroughs and several other Republican House members. Other top state officials stopped short of explicit criticism, with Governor Greg Abbott remarking that what French posted was "not my message."

The fallout has also impacted Texas's competitive U.S. Senate race. Democratic nominee James Tallarico urged his opponent, Texas Attorney General and French ally Ken Paxton, to disavow the remarks. Paxton declined to do so, instead releasing a statement focused on criticizing Tallarico. While Democrats remain optimistic about their midterm prospects, a Democrat has not won statewide office in Texas since 1994.