Texas Attorney General and Ken Paxton's Record

What Is the Texas Attorney General

The Texas attorney general is the state’s chief lawyer, elected statewide every 4 years. The office defends state laws in court, sues companies and governments on the state’s behalf, collects child support, rules on which public records must be released, and advises state officials on what the law allows.

Most Texans meet the office through child support or a consumer complaint, not a headline lawsuit. The same office that sues federal agencies also processes custody payments and tells your city council whether it must hand over its emails.

Who Is the Texas Attorney General

Ken Paxton, a Republican, is the Texas attorney general, and his term ends January 1, 2027. He was first elected in 2014 and reelected in 2018 and 2022, when he beat Democrat Rochelle Garza 53.4% to 43.7%. He is not running for a fourth term. He is the Republican nominee for U.S. Senate after beating Sen. John Cornyn in the May 26 runoff, 63.8% to 36.2%, a margin of 384,758 votes. He faces Democrat James Talarico on November 3.

Three candidates are on the November 3 ballot for attorney general: Democratic state Sen. Nathan Johnson, Republican state Sen. Mayes Middleton, and Libertarian Tom Oxford. Johnson won the Democratic runoff over former Galveston Mayor Joe Jaworski, 59.4% to 40.6%. Middleton won the Republican runoff over U.S. Rep. Chip Roy, 56.2% to 43.8%.

The March Republican primary split four ways, and Paxton’s pick finished last. Paxton endorsed Aaron Reitz, a former top deputy in his office.

Republican primary for Texas attorney general, March 3, 2026

Category	Value
Mayes Middleton: 811,171 votes	39.1%
Chip Roy: 655,064 votes	31.6%
Joan Huffman: 312,998 votes	15.1%
Aaron Reitz: 293,698 votes	14.2%

Source: Ballotpedia, certified results. Aaron Reitz was endorsed by Ken Paxton. Middleton and Roy advanced to the May 26 runoff.

What the Attorney General’s Office Does

The attorney general’s office is one of the largest law firms in Texas, and most of its work is not political. It employs more than 4,000 people across 38 divisions and 117 offices around the state, according to its own count.

The child support figure is money collected from paying parents and passed to families, not state spending. The office’s work falls into a few jobs, and each one reaches Texans differently.

The office’s power has limits a court drew in 2021. The Court of Criminal Appeals ruled on December 15, 2021, in State v. Stephens, that the attorney general cannot prosecute election crimes on his own. A local district or county attorney must ask for the office’s help first. Most criminal cases in Texas belong to local prosecutors, not the attorney general.

How to Use the Attorney General’s Office

You can go to the office directly for child support, consumer complaints, and records disputes. You do not need a lawyer for any of these first steps.

Find your situation

Start with what you need. Each situation names the office's process and the next step.

I need child support set up, paid, or changed

1. Apply or manage a case through the office's Child Support Division, online or at a local office.
2. Bring your case number if you have one, and any court order.
3. To change the amount, ask the division for a review; a change in income or custody can qualify.

A business cheated or misled me

1. File a complaint with the office's Consumer Protection Division.
2. Include receipts, contracts, and dates. The office uses complaints to spot patterns, but it does not act as your private lawyer.
3. For money back from a single business, small claims (justice) court is often faster.

A government body will not give me public records

1. The agency must release the records or ask the attorney general for a ruling within 10 business days of your written request (Gov't Code 552.301).
2. The attorney general must rule within 45 business days, with a possible extension.
3. Our guide to public records requests has a request template you can adapt for Texas.

I was the victim of a violent crime and have costs

1. The office runs the Crime Victims' Compensation Program, which can help pay medical, counseling, and funeral costs.
2. Apply through the office's Crime Victims pages; there are filing deadlines, so apply soon.

Ken Paxton’s Record as Attorney General

Paxton’s time in office has run alongside a decade of legal cases against him, and each ended without a conviction or an admission of wrongdoing. He was indicted in 2015, impeached in 2023, and acquitted the same year; the criminal charges were dismissed in 2025 after he met the terms of a deal with prosecutors, and federal prosecutors declined to charge him.

1. 2015 Sworn in, then indicted Took office in January. Indicted in July on securities fraud charges from before he took office.
2. 2020 Seven top aides accuse him They alleged bribery and abuse of office to help donor Nate Paul. Four later sued under the Whistleblower Act.
3. May 2023 Impeached by the House The House voted 121-23 on 20 articles, suspending him from office.
4. Sep 2023 Acquitted by the Senate No article drew more than 14 of the 21 votes needed to convict.
5. 2025 Cases end Securities charges dismissed in June. He dropped his appeal of the $6.6 million whistleblower judgment in July.
6. May 2026 Wins Senate nomination Beat Sen. John Cornyn in the runoff by 27.6 points.

Sources: Office of the Attorney General; Ballotpedia; Texas Tribune.

Ken Paxton as attorney general, 2015 to 2026: 2015: Sworn in, then indicted (Took office in January. Indicted in July on securities fraud charges from before he took office.). 2020: Seven top aides accuse him (They alleged bribery and abuse of office to help donor Nate Paul. Four later sued under the Whistleblower Act.). May 2023: Impeached by the House (The House voted 121-23 on 20 articles, suspending him from office.). Sep 2023: Acquitted by the Senate (No article drew more than 14 of the 21 votes needed to convict.). 2025: Cases end (Securities charges dismissed in June. He dropped his appeal of the $6.6 million whistleblower judgment in July.). May 2026: Wins Senate nomination (Beat Sen. John Cornyn in the runoff by 27.6 points.).

2015: Paxton was sworn in on January 5 as the 51st attorney general. On July 31, a Collin County grand jury indicted him on two first-degree securities fraud counts and one registration charge tied to selling stock in a company called Servergy before he took office (Ballotpedia). He pleaded not guilty.

2020: In early October, reports surfaced that seven of Paxton’s senior aides, including his first assistant, had accused him of bribery and abuse of office to help Austin real estate developer Nate Paul, a campaign donor. Paxton’s office called the claims false and fired or lost all seven within weeks (Ballotpedia). Four of them sued under the Texas Whistleblower Act.

May 2023: The House General Investigating Committee recommended impeachment after hearing from its investigators. The full House voted 121-23 on May 27, and Paxton was suspended from office.

September 2023: The Senate acquitted Paxton on all 16 articles it voted on and dismissed the other 4 (Texas Tribune). He returned to office two days later.

2025: The Justice Department had declined to bring federal charges in the final weeks of the Biden administration, the Associated Press reported in April (Texas Tribune). The securities charges were dismissed on June 18 after Paxton paid about $271,000 in restitution and completed 100 hours of community service under a March 2024 deal (Texas Tribune). In July, he dropped his appeal of a $6.6 million judgment the four former aides won, which the state must pay. He has not admitted wrongdoing (Texas Tribune).

May 2026: Paxton won the Republican Senate runoff over Cornyn with 63.8% of the vote (Ballotpedia).

Was Ken Paxton Impeached

Yes. The Texas House impeached Ken Paxton on May 27, 2023, and the Texas Senate acquitted him on September 16, 2023. He was the second statewide official in Texas history to be impeached. The House vote was 121-23, meaning 84% of members voting backed impeachment, most of them Republicans in a Republican-led chamber.

Removal took 21 votes in the Senate. The most support any article drew was 14, which left conviction 7 votes short. Two Republicans voted to convict: Kelly Hancock of North Richland Hills on 12 articles and Robert Nichols of Jacksonville on 11 (Texas Tribune). Paxton called the impeachment a “sham” coordinated with the Biden administration. The House managers who brought the case said the evidence showed he broke state law to help Nate Paul.

Suing the Federal Government

Under Paxton, Texas sued the Biden administration more than 100 times, leading almost 4 times as many suits as the next state. The suits blocked or delayed an overtime pay rule for about 4 million workers, federal guidance on transgender workers and students, and the 2021 pause on deportations, among others.

The two sides read the same record differently. Paxton’s campaign says the suits “repeatedly stopped unconstitutional overreach” and protected Texas sovereignty. Georgetown law professor Steve Vladeck has argued that filing in one-judge divisions turned a “loophole into an art form” and undermines trust in the courts. South Texas College of Law professor Josh Blackman told the Tribune the effect came from delay as much as wins: “It’s not always about winning.”

The Attorney General’s Office in 2025 and 2026

Since the change in administration, the office’s biggest cases have targeted technology and health companies rather than Washington. The two largest settlements, with Google and Meta, each topped $1 billion.

Major Texas attorney general cases and actions

As of September 27, 2026

• Google settlement over Texans' data Final ruling, $1.375 billion

  Announced in principle May 9, 2025 and finalized October 31, 2025. (source)

• Meta settlement over children's safety Final ruling, over $1 billion

  Announced August 26, 2026, with required new safety features for minors. (source)

• TikTok deceptive-marketing lawsuit In litigation, liability found

  Filed January 2025. A state district judge found TikTok liable for misleading parents about content safety; the office announced it September 10, 2026. (source)

• Lawsuit against Johnson & Johnson and Kenvue over Tylenol marketing In litigation

  Filed October 27, 2025. The office has announced no ruling. (source)

• Investigation of data center developments Agency action, opened

  Opened September 24, 2026 into hundreds of projects, a week after a separate inquiry into one in Taylor. (source)

• Limit on prosecuting election crimes alone Final ruling, State v. Stephens

  The Court of Criminal Appeals ruled December 15, 2021 that the attorney general cannot prosecute election crimes without a local prosecutor's request. (source)

Source: Office of the Attorney General news releases; State v. Stephens, Texas Court of Criminal Appeals

The dollar figures come from the office’s own announcements. A settlement’s headline amount can include payments spread over years, and the office’s releases do not always break out how the money is spent.

What You Can Do

1. Vote in the open race. The attorney general is on your November 3 ballot. Check your registration and deadline with our Texas voting guide in the voter registration explainer.
2. Use the office for what it owes you. Child support, consumer complaints, and records rulings are services you can start today through the situations above.
3. Request the records yourself. The Public Information Act lets any person ask a Texas government for its records. Our public records guide covers how to write the request.
4. Tell your state legislators what the office should do. The Legislature sets the office’s budget and powers, including whether it can prosecute election crimes on its own. Our guide to writing your representatives covers how to make the ask.