Texas AG Ken Paxton Confronted About Personal Conduct During U.S. Senate Tele-Town Hall
Key Takeaways
- •A caller asked Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton about his marital infidelity during a Monday tele-town hall for his U.S. Senate campaign.
- •Paxton declined to discuss personal family matters on the call, which came days after hecklers raised similar accusations at a Houston campaign event.
- •Paxton was impeached by the Texas House in 2023 on allegations including misusing his office to benefit a political donor, with 121 members supporting the charges.
- •Paxton was acquitted by the Texas Senate, reinstated, and later supported primary challengers against several Republican legislators who voted to impeach him.
- •Paxton is competing against Democratic State Representative James Talarico for a U.S. Senate seat in a state where no Democrat has won statewide office since 1994.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton faced an uncomfortable moment during a tele-town hall held for his U.S. Senate campaign on Monday, when a caller directly questioned him about his marital infidelity.
"Hi Paxton, nice to meet you," the caller began. "I'm just wondering — why did you cheat on your wife?"
Paxton deflected the question, responding: "Um. I'm not going to talk about personal issues that relate to my family, just like I don't think you would want to discuss your marriage on a call with thousands of people."
"All I can tell you is that I'm proud of my kids," he added.
Journalist Aaron Rupar shared a video clip of the exchange, originally posted by Caitlin Montgomery Gibson on Instagram. The HuffPost also reported on the encounter.
The tele-town hall confrontation is the latest in a series of public challenges Paxton has faced over his personal conduct on the campaign trail. Earlier this week, hecklers at a Houston event shouted similar accusations as he campaigned.
Paxton's infidelity and the breakdown of his marriage have become recurring campaign liabilities, issues directly intertwined with the abuse-of-power scandal that led to his impeachment by the Republican-dominated Texas House of Representatives in 2023. The articles of impeachment accused Paxton of misusing his office to benefit a political donor, among other allegations. The House vote to impeach was overwhelming, with 121 members — including a large share of Republicans — supporting the charges.
Though Paxton escaped conviction in the Texas Senate, where acquittal required a two-thirds majority, and was reinstated to office, he subsequently worked to support primary challengers against Republican state representatives who voted to impeach him, several of whom lost their seats in subsequent primaries. The retaliation campaign underscored Paxton's enduring influence within the party's activist base, even as the personal and ethical allegations continue to trail him.
Paxton, who has served as Texas attorney general since 2015, is currently running in a competitive U.S. Senate race against Democratic state Representative James Talarico. The race is drawing heightened attention in a state where no Democrat has won a statewide office since 1994, though demographic shifts and suburban realignment have steadily narrowed Republican margins in recent election cycles.
