By TXBayNews Staff | December 22, 2025
As Texans head toward a rare open race for attorney general in 2026, a new explainer from The Texas Tribune has put a spotlight on one of the most powerful — and increasingly controversial — offices in state government. The Texas Attorney General’s Office is not just the state’s chief civil law firm; it has become a national political force, a testing ground for conservative legal activism, and, critics argue, an agency stretched thin by years of ideological warfare.
At the center of this transformation is Ken Paxton, who has held the office since 2015 and is now running for U.S. Senate. Whether voters see his legacy as a model to extend or a warning sign to correct will largely determine the direction of Texas law enforcement, consumer protection, and multistate litigation for years to come.
What the Texas Attorney General Actually Does
Despite frequent confusion, the Texas attorney general is not a statewide prosecutor with broad criminal authority. The role is overwhelmingly civil — but vast in scope.
The office employs more than 4,000 staffers, including roughly 750 attorneys, and is responsible for:
- Defending Texas laws and agencies in state and federal court
- Enforcing consumer protection and antitrust laws
- Investigating Medicaid fraud and waste
- Running the state’s child support enforcement system
- Administering crime victims’ compensation
- Combating human trafficking
- Issuing formal legal opinions interpreting Texas law
Unlike attorneys general in some other states, Texas’ AG generally cannot bring criminal cases unless invited by a local prosecutor or authorized by statute. That makes the office’s growing national profile — especially its heavy presence before federal courts — all the more striking.
Paxton’s Transformation: National Clout, Local Strain
Under Paxton, the office shifted from a mostly reactive legal shop into a frontline combatant against Washington. Texas sued the Biden administration more than 100 times on issues ranging from border enforcement and abortion policy to environmental regulation and gender-related mandates. Those cases elevated Texas into a leadership role among red states and made the AG’s office a frequent player before the U.S. Supreme Court.
Supporters view this as exactly what Texans elected Paxton to do: fight federal overreach aggressively and unapologetically.
But the Tribune’s reporting also highlights the operational costs of that strategy:
- Two-thirds of the Medicaid fraud division’s attorneys reportedly left
- Human trafficking prosecutions were delayed or dropped
- Crime victim compensation payments slowed
- The AG’s office declined to represent state agencies more than 75 times in two years, forcing taxpayers to pay for outside counsel
- High-profile cases increasingly relied on expensive private attorneys
Even some conservative legal experts now warn that the office’s bread-and-butter responsibilities — protecting consumers, victims, and taxpayers — risk being overshadowed by headline-grabbing political lawsuits.
An Open Seat and a High-Stakes Republican Primary
For the first time in over a decade, Paxton will not be on the ballot for attorney general in 2026. The open seat has drawn a crowded and ideologically charged field.
Republican primary candidates (March 3, 2026):
- Chip Roy – A conservative firebrand and former Paxton deputy endorsed by Sen. Ted Cruz. Roy has criticized Paxton’s scandals while pledging to maintain an aggressive posture against federal overreach. Early polling shows him leading.
- Aaron Reitz – A close Paxton ally and former Trump DOJ official, endorsed by Paxton himself. Reitz campaigns as the pure continuation candidate for Paxton-era litigation.
- Mayes Middleton – A self-funding conservative legislator emphasizing public safety, border enforcement, and traditional law-and-order priorities.
- Joan Huffman – A former judge and prosecutor running on experience, professionalism, and restoring operational balance inside the agency.
All four promise to defend Texas aggressively — but differ on how closely the office should resemble Paxton’s confrontational model.
Democrats Argue for a Reset
Democratic candidates, facing long odds in deep-red Texas, are using the race to argue that the office has been politicized at the expense of basic governance.
Their field includes:
- Nathan Johnson, a Dallas-area legislator emphasizing rule of law and institutional trust
- Joe Jaworski, a repeat candidate and grandson of Watergate prosecutor Leon Jaworski
- Tony Box, a former federal prosecutor and FBI agent
They argue the AG’s office should return to being a neutral legal institution rather than a national political weapon — a message likely to resonate more with independents than with the GOP base.
Why This Race Matters
Political scientists now describe the Texas attorney general as arguably the most powerful statewide office, largely independent of the governor and legislature. Through multistate lawsuits, the AG can shape national policy, influence Supreme Court doctrine, and set legal agendas far beyond Texas’ borders.
The question for voters is not whether the office should be powerful — it already is — but how that power should be used.
Is the Paxton era a blueprint for conservative resistance that future attorneys general should expand? Or a cautionary tale about politicization overwhelming core responsibilities to Texans?
The 2026 election will answer that — and likely shape Texas’ legal posture for a generation.
Texas Bay News 
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