DALLAS — Could it be egg-lectioneering?
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) announced Wednesday that his office will help give away 7 million free eggs to people in his state following settlements with producers over high prices, as the GOP looks to face cost-of-living issues head-on before the 2026 midterm elections.
Paxton, who will be vying with state Rep. James Talarico in November for the US Senate seat currently held by Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), said that Texans will be able to pick up the free cartons of eggs from at least 17 different food banks.
“I will continue to help our families put food on the table and do everything within my power to lower prices and help Texans who are struggling to make ends meet,” he added.
Meanwhile, Talarico has planned a food drive to coincide with Republicans’ convention “to help Texans struggling with rising grocery prices.”
Affordability is the number-one issue voters are expressing concerns about heading into the midterm elections, according to a July Pew Research poll, with 15% of respondents saying they’d like to hear more about plans to tackle the cost of living from candidates running for Congress.
At least 29% of those surveyed — including the 15% who spoke about affordability issues — expressed general concerns about the economy.
Another Fox News poll in August found that voters’ views of President Trump’s handling of the economy were a net-negative of 33 percentage points — and other surveys show Democrats are now favored to handle cost-of-living issues.
The average price of eggs nationally is around $2.18 per dozen following a spike in early 2025 to more than $6 per carton, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Paxton’s office first announced the settlements with Cal-Maine Foods, Centrum/Versova and Hickman’s Egg Ranch in June of this year after antitrust claims were filed for an alleged conspiracy by each to inflate egg prices between 2022 and 2025.
In addition to the free-egg giveaway, the producers must pay $3.3 million to states that joined with Texas in the antitrust claim.
Feeding Texas is partnering with the food banks to help distribute the millions of eggs.
Talarico’s “Love Thy Neighbor” food drive collected donations in Dallas, as well as Plano, Fort Worth and Denton and other cities through Tuesday.
The campaign will collect donations at sites in Dallas, Plano, Glenn Heights, Fort Worth and Denton from Sunday through Tuesday. On Wednesday, volunteers began distributing the collected food in Dallas.
