Overview
- A photo of University of Texas students that Bo French posted on X with captions calling them 'foreigners' drew widespread condemnation after the original post on Sunday.
- Several students pictured said they are U.S. citizens and described the post as jarring and hurtful, saying the image was taken out of context during a football celebration.
- French refused to retract the remarks, used the backlash to solicit donations, and his campaign activity produced a fundraising surge for Democrat Jon Rosenthal of roughly $150,000, the Rosenthal campaign reported.
- High‑profile Republicans including Sen. John Cornyn and strategist Karl Rove publicly disavowed French and said they will not support him, with others calling the remarks racist and warning they could damage the GOP ticket.
- The episode spotlights French's longer record of inflammatory anti‑immigrant and anti‑Muslim posts and turns the usually low‑profile Railroad Commission race into a test of party unity that could affect down‑ballot turnout and voter coalitions.