Texas Attorney General Faces Voter Fraud Allegations Amid Residency Dispute
The Collin County Democratic Party has lodged a formal complaint with the state secretary of state, while Paxton’s office has declined to clarify his voting registration status.
Democratic U.S. Senate candidate James Talarico has accused Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton of committing voter fraud by casting ballots in six separate elections from an address where he no longer resides. The allegations follow joint reporting by ProPublica and The Texas Tribune, which established that Paxton moved out of his marital home in 2024 but continued to use that location for voting, including in the March Republican primary.
Talarico characterised the claims as a direct contradiction to Paxton’s public stance on election integrity. During a campaign event in Houston, the state representative stated that Paxton had led a "voter fraud witch hunt" while simultaneously engaging in illegal voting practices. The attorney general is currently challenging U.S. Senator John Cornyn in the race to replace him.
Three election experts consulted by the news organisations indicated that Paxton may have breached state law. While Texas legislation permits voters to temporarily use a non-residential address if they intend to return, election lawyers suggested this exception is unlikely to apply given the ongoing and acrimonious divorce proceedings between Paxton and State Senator Angela Paxton.
In response to the allegations, Paxton declined to answer questions regarding his residency or voting registration. During a recent news conference focused on law enforcement endorsements, a campaign aide interceded when a journalist asked why Paxton voted in Collin County, stating the office would only address questions related to crime and policing. Neither the attorney general’s office nor his campaign responded to further inquiries from ProPublica and the Tribune.
The Collin County Democratic Party filed a complaint with Texas Secretary of State Jane Nelson last week, urging an investigation into the matter. Nelson’s term ended on Friday, three days after the complaint was submitted, and Governor Greg Abbott appointed senior adviser Robert Howden as her replacement. The Collin County Democratic Party confirmed that the complaint remains under review by a staff attorney, though it is unclear if the new secretary of state has taken further action.
Legal scholars noted that the allegations may resonate with voters due to Paxton’s history of legal challenges. Cal Jillson, a political science professor at Southern Methodist University, described the voting practices as an example of playing "fast and loose with a law" that the attorney general is expected to know intimately. This follows Paxton’s 2023 impeachment by the Texas Legislature on charges of bribery and corruption, which resulted in his acquittal by the state Senate.
Jon Taylor, a political science professor at the University of Texas at San Antonio, suggested that the silence from the Republican-led state government indicates an effort to slow-walk the investigation. He argued that this inaction contrasts sharply with the rhetoric surrounding the importance of securing Texas elections, describing the situation as an instance of "rank hypocrisy."
The attorney general’s office has not confirmed whether it received the complaint or if it intends to appoint a special prosecutor to investigate the allegations, given the inherent conflict of interest. As the review continues, the allegations add a new layer of scrutiny to Paxton’s tenure and his current Senate bid.
