Ken Paxton is the Republican nominee for U.S. Senate and has served as Texas attorney general since 2015, after earlier terms in the Texas House and Texas Senate. He defeated four-term incumbent Sen. John Cornyn in the May 2026 Republican primary runoff. His campaign emphasizes border security, tax cuts, energy development, and election integrity, and he is a close ally of President Trump.
Ken Paxton opposes the Affordable Care Act and led a 20-state lawsuit to overturn it as Texas Attorney General. In his 2026 Senate campaign, he aligns with the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) movement, pledging to "take on Big Pharma and Big Food," increase transparency in food and healthcare systems, and investigate corporate practices — including vaccine recommendations, food ingredients, and toxic chemicals in consumer products — that he argues put profits ahead of Americans' health.
Ken Paxton positions himself as a fiscal conservative who supports cutting taxes, reducing wasteful federal spending, and deregulation — particularly of the energy sector. He is a staunch ally of President Trump's economic agenda and pledges to revitalize American manufacturing, create American jobs, and restore the American Dream, though he has not released a detailed economic plan.
Ken Paxton is a staunch defender of Texas's oil and gas industry who opposes federal climate regulations as harmful to the state's economy. As Attorney General, he sued to block EPA rules he called "Biden's extremist climate agenda," and in June 2026 issued an opinion blocking Austin's electric-ready building code as discriminatory against natural gas, arguing it violated state law protecting consumer energy choice.
Ken Paxton is strongly pro-life and has enforced Texas's near-total abortion ban (no exceptions for rape or incest), celebrated the overturning of Roe v. Wade, sued out-of-state abortion pill providers, and fought federal efforts to require emergency abortion care. On IVF, Paxton initially called himself a "strong supporter" of the procedure in June 2026, then clarified his position in subsequent statements, saying he supports restrictions to prevent the loss of fertilized embryos and that he would need to review specific legislation before committing to vote for it.
Ken Paxton supports finishing the border wall, securing the border, and deporting "criminal illegal aliens." As Texas Attorney General, he sued the Biden administration over 100 times to end "open borders policies," defended Texas's SB 4 law allowing state police to arrest individuals for illegal entry, and became the first Texas law enforcement official to sign a 287(g) agreement with the Trump administration to assist with mass deportations.
Ken Paxton advocates an "America First" foreign policy that prioritizes U.S. sovereignty and border security over foreign entanglements. He opposes sending billions in foreign aid without first securing America's borders, supports peace through strength, views China as a serious threat, and affirms the U.S.-Israel relationship as crucial to national security.
Ken Paxton opposes DEI and affirmative action programs as unconstitutional racial discrimination, advocating for a colorblind, merit-based framework. He has taken extensive legal action to restrict transgender rights — including banning gender-affirming care for minors and sex-marker changes on state IDs — while championing religious liberty protections and aggressive election integrity enforcement.
Ken Paxton is an uncompromising defender of the Second Amendment, holding A+ ratings from both the NRA and Gun Owners of America. As Texas Attorney General, he led lawsuits against the ATF's pistol brace ban, universal registration rule, and other federal gun control measures. In his 2026 Senate campaign, he has attacked John Cornyn for negotiating the 2022 bipartisan gun safety bill and pledges to "protect our gun rights" alongside President Trump, stating the Second Amendment "isn't negotiable."
Ken Paxton is a strong advocate for universal school choice, celebrating Texas's school choice legislation as a historic step toward educational freedom and vowing to defend it against legal challenges. As AG, he has enforced Texas's ban on critical race theory in public schools, calling CRT anti-American propaganda, and has sued multiple school districts to require display of the Ten Commandments in classrooms and to stop illegal electioneering using school resources.
Ken Paxton has made "election integrity" a signature issue as Texas Attorney General and U.S. Senate candidate. He successfully defended Texas's ban on paid ballot harvesting (SB 1) at the Fifth Circuit, upheld voter ID requirements for mail-in ballots, launched an illegal voting tipline in February 2026, and issued a legal opinion protecting poll watchers' and state inspectors' authority at polling locations. His campaign calls him "a national leader on election integrity."
Ken Paxton has built a record as one of the most aggressive state-level litigators against Big Tech, filing over two dozen lawsuits against companies like Meta, Google, TikTok, Netflix, WhatsApp, and Discord for privacy violations and harm to minors — securing multi-billion-dollar settlements including $1.4 billion from Meta and $1.4 billion from Google. He created a dedicated Big Tech enforcement division in the Texas AG's office and has investigated Chinese AI company DeepSeek for privacy violations under Texas law. On cryptocurrency, Paxton explicitly supports the CLARITY Act to establish a pro-growth federal regulatory framework, stating "America must be the crypto capital of the world." On AI data centers, he has not taken a clear public position, caught between rural constituents opposing development and pro-growth Texas Republicans.
Ken Paxton has consistently used state authority to preempt and override local government policies, suing cities over sanctuary policies, marijuana enforcement, police funding, and blocking 130+ cities from raising property taxes for non-compliance with state audit requirements. He argues local officials must follow state law and cannot "pick and choose" which laws to enforce.
Ken Paxton opposes the Affordable Care Act and led a 20-state lawsuit to overturn it as Texas Attorney General. In his 2026 Senate campaign, he aligns with the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) movement, pledging to "take on Big Pharma and Big Food," increase transparency in food and healthcare systems, and investigate corporate practices — including vaccine recommendations, food ingredients, and toxic chemicals in consumer products — that he argues put profits ahead of Americans' health.
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Background
Career History
Attorney General2015 – Present
State of Texas
51st Attorney General of Texas. Elected in 2014, re-elected in 2018 and 2022. Suspended May-September 2023 during impeachment proceedings, then acquitted and reinstated.
State Senator2013 – 2015
Texas Senate (District 8)
Represented Senate District 8 covering parts of Collin and Dallas counties.
State Representative2003 – 2013
Texas House of Representatives (District 70)
Represented House District 70 for 10 years, one of the fastest-growing regions in Texas.
Attorney / In-House Counsel1991 – 2002
Strasburger & Price, LLP and J.C. Penney Company
Worked at the law firm Strasburger & Price, LLP, then as in-house counsel for J.C. Penney, before opening his own law practice in 2002.
Education
Baylor UniversityBachelor of Arts in Psychology (1985)
Baylor UniversityMaster of Business Administration (1986)
University of Virginia School of LawJuris Doctor (1991)
Top Donors
Raised approximately $16.8 million cumulatively since the start of 2025 (about $9.2 million through his principal campaign committee, per FEC, plus roughly $7.5 million via joint fundraising committees), with 88% of contributions coming from large donors and only about $241,000 from PACs. His top individual donors include Kenneth Fisher ($1 million), Mayfair Investments ($500,001), William Doggett ($500,000), and Jay Graham ($500,000), reflecting heavy support from real-estate, oil-and-gas, and tech/IT billionaires; outside support came from Lone Star Liberty PAC (~$770K) and the crypto-backed Fellowship PAC ($500K).
Paxton is a former legislator (Texas House, District 70, 2003-2013; Texas Senate, District 8, 2013-2015) and has served as Texas Attorney General since 2015, so his governing record is defined primarily by his executive actions. As AG he has been a leading conservative legal figure, defending Texas's near-total abortion ban (Senate Bill 8) before the U.S. Supreme Court, suing out-of-state providers over abortion medication, and filing numerous lawsuits against the Biden administration over immigration and transgender policies. He was impeached by the Texas House in 2023 over allegations of corruption and abuse of office but was acquitted by the Texas Senate (16-14), and he has faced securities-fraud indictments without conviction.