Ken Paxton
Attorney General, TX · Republican · Texas
Ken Paxton is the Texas Attorney General and the 2026 Republican nominee for U.S. Senate after defeating the incumbent in the primary runoff.
Profile last updated Jul 8, 2026 · Center Field Politics
Scout's Report
A combative conservative attorney general who built a national profile through multistate litigation and won a contested Senate primary.
Core Strength
Strong base support and an aggressive litigation record against federal policy.
Core Weakness
Carries documented controversies, including a 2023 impeachment and acquittal.
Recent Action
Won the May 2026 Republican Senate primary runoff against the incumbent.
Key Metrics
- Reliability
- 94%
- Documented Controversies
- 2
- Funding Secured
- $260M
- Outside Influence
- High
Roll-call or session participation — did they show up?
Official ethics findings or court records only.
State legal-enforcement budget and settlements directed within Texas (absolute, term-to-date).
Derived from PAC and outside-spending share of campaign funding.
Where They Stand
Stances on the issues many voters care most about. Where a candidate has not given a clear answer we mark it "Mixed / Partial" or "Unclear" rather than guess. Positions are drawn from official records and bias-labeled news sources; they are descriptive only and are never scored.
Environment—Opposes32
Climate protections and regulation versus fewer climate-related regulations on industry.
Opposes federal climate mandates and has sued to block environmental rules.
Healthcare—Opposes3
Expanding healthcare coverage for all versus expanding market-based, private insurance.
Opposes single-payer healthcare and challenged the Affordable Care Act in court.
Second Amendment—Opposes3
New firearm regulations versus no new firearm regulations.
Opposes new firearm restrictions and emphasizes Second Amendment rights.
Immigration—Opposes3
Pathways to citizenship versus a closed-border approach.
Backs hardline enforcement and has sued the federal government over immigration policy.
Roe v. Wade—Opposes3
Protecting access to abortion versus restricting access to abortion.
Defends Texas abortion restrictions and has litigated to enforce them.
National Security—Unclear3
Whether diplomacy or military strength should be the primary national-security priority.
As a state attorney general he has no significant public record on U.S. military action against Iran.
Campaign Funding
Raised $7.6M for the 2026 cycle, with $2.1M in outside spending supporting them. Outside influence read: high; opacity proxy 22%.
Total raised (cycle 2026): $7,600,511 · Outside influence: High
Estimated Net Worth
Most recent estimate: $1M-$3M
Year-over-year change cannot be computed until additional disclosure years are added to this profile.
Party Loyalty
Party-line alignment on major recorded votes.
On the 2026 Ballot
Sources
- Office of the Texas Attorney General
- AP — Texas policy coverage
- Ballotpedia — Ken Paxton political positions
- Texas Tribune — "Texas AG Ken Paxton acquitted in impeachment trial" (Sept 16, 2023)
- Texas Tribune — "Ken Paxton was acquitted. See how each senator voted." (Sept 16, 2023)
- FEC — Campaign finance (2026 cycle (through May 6, 2026))
- Ballotpedia — Officeholder financial disclosure
- Wikipedia — Ken Paxton