Retired Houston Astronaut Terry Virts Enters 2026 Senate Race Against Cornyn

Retired Houston astronaut and political outsider Terry Virts announced on Monday that he will run for the United States Senate in 2026, targeting the seat that Republican John Cornyn has held for over 20 years.

"I’ll be running as a Democrat challenger for the seat currently held by just another D.C. insider who has lost touch with Texas," Virts said in a video.

Virts, 57, is getting a jump start on more established candidates like former U.S. Reps. Beto O’Rourke and Colin Allred, as well as state Rep. James Talarico of Austin, who have all said they are considering entering the race, though none have filed for the office yet.

Virts, an Air Force fighter pilot before joining NASA in 2000, has never run for office before but is convinced his background outside of politics can allow him to do what no Democrat has done since the 1990s.

"I intend to be the first Democrat in more than 30 years to win a statewide election in Texas by being a commonsense, down-to-earth candidate who focuses on issues that we care about like the economy, health care and education," Virts said.

In a video announcing his candidacy, Virts emphasized his tenure as an astronaut. Virts became a pilot for the space shuttle program in 2000 and more recently served as the commander of the International Space Station before his retirement in 2016. Through his missions to the space station, Virts has spent more than 200 days in space.

"I've risked my life for this country, and I'll fight anyone trying to destroy it," Virts said.

More specifically, Virts has slammed President Donald Trump for trade wars that have hurt some farmers and potential cuts to Medicaid.

For Democrats, the race for the U.S. Senate has spurred growing interest because of polling that shows Cornyn trailing his GOP primary opponent Ken Paxton, the current Texas attorney general.

If Paxton were to win the primary, Democrats believe he would be vulnerable because of the Texas House voting in 2023 to impeach him from office, though the Texas Senate later acquitted him.