An unearthed video from YouTube has revealed a campaign ad from Senator John Cornyn’s campaign advocating, in Spanish, for amnesty for illegal immigrants. The revelation comes as Cornyn is set to face off against current Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in a runoff election in late May.

The unlisted YouTube video was first noted by Scott Presler, who wrote, “In an unearthed video, Senator Cornyn’s team forgot to delete a video from YouTube where Cornyn advocates for amnesty for illegal aliens. It would be a shame if every Republican in Texas sees this before the May 26th runoff. No amnesty!” The video was eventually made private by Cornyn’s team, Presler wrote.

The video, posted in September of 2020 to Cornyn’s Texans for John Cornyn YouTube account, featured the title “Tranquilo.” A voice over, entirely in Spanish, talks about how Cornyn was working to stop sex trafficking at the border, supports police reform, and “firmly supports the legalization of Dreamers.”

Dreamers are migrants who came to the US as children. Per the National Immigration Forum, there were an estimated 3.6 million people who fall under the Dreamer designation in the US as of 2024. A large majority of that group lacks any legal status in the US.

Rep. Brandon Gill wrote, “It’s hard to believe this is real, but it is. John Cornyn released an ad in Spanish promising his support for amnesty. Apparently he forgot that we represent American citizens, not illegal aliens. This is absolutely disqualifying. I want my country back, and I’m sick of swampy politicians in Washington who are dying to give it away. One of many reasons for Texans to vote for Ken Paxton in the runoffs next month.”

After neither Cornyn nor Paxton reached the 50 percent threshold in March’s Republican primary, the two will be facing off in a runoff election in May. The latest poll in the race from Texas Public Opinion Research, conducted in early April, found that 48 percent of respondents said they would vote for Paxton, while 40 percent said they would vote for Cornyn. The top issue ranked by respondents was immigration, followed closely by border security.