Senate GOP campaign arm hits Paxton over divorce filing

The Senate GOP’s campaign committee swung at Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton on Thursday after news broke that his wife, Angela Paxton, had filed for divorce. 

“What Ken Paxton has put his family through is truly repulsive and disgusting,” NRSC spokeswoman Joanna Rodriguez said. “No one should have to endure what Angela Paxton has, and we pray for her as she chooses to stand up for herself and her family during this difficult time.”

The Texas attorney general is looking to topple Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), with one poll in June showing him up 22 points over the sitting senator. The NRSC endorsed Cornyn in the 2026 race and generally supports incumbents.

One NRSC staffer touted Cornyn’s marriage on X, posting a heart in a reply to a 2022 post from Cornyn celebrating their anniversary.

Angela Paxton wrote on social media Thursday that she was filing for divorce on “biblical grounds” after 38 years of marriage. She alleged in her divorce filing that Ken Paxton had committed adultery, according to the Texas Tribune, and wrote that the couple had not been living together for over a year.

“I believe marriage is a sacred covenant and I have earnestly pursued reconciliation,” she wrote on X. “But in light of recent discoveries, I do not believe that it honors God or is loving to myself, my children, or Ken to remain in the marriage.”

“After facing the pressures of countless political attacks and public scrutiny, Angela and I have decided to start a new chapter in our lives,” Ken Paxton said on X. “I ask for your prayers and privacy at this time.”

Ken Paxton was impeached by the Texas state House in 2023 before being acquitted by the state’s Senate in a trial that extensively aired allegations that he had an extramarital affair. Angela Paxton attended the trial but did not vote.

The Texas attorney general raised $2.9 million in the second quarter of 2025 for the March 2026 primary.