FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: September 4, 2025

Contact: Michael Clauw, mclauw@campaignforaccountability.org, 202.780.5750

Today, Campaign for Accountability (CfA), a nonprofit watchdog group, filed a motion in the 468th District Court in Collin County, Texas to unseal the divorce records of Attorney General Ken Paxton and State Senator Angela Paxton, who collectively represent more than 31 million Texans. CfA asserts that any personal embarrassment the Paxtons may be seeking to prevent by having the records sealed does not overcome the public’s overriding interest in knowing relevant information about their elected officials.

“Law and precedent overwhelmingly support unsealing the Paxtons’ divorce records in the interest of public knowledge. Courts have routinely unsealed records in similar cases involving elected officials, and we are asking this Court to do the same,” said CfA Executive Director Michelle Kuppersmith.

Read CfA’s motion.

On July 10, 2025, Senator Paxton filed the divorce petition, announcing on X that she had filed for divorce on “biblical grounds,” citing “recent discoveries.” She then filed a motion to seal the court records, which a judge granted the following day.

As described in CfA’s motion, Senator Paxton’s divorce petition follows an extramarital affair Attorney General Paxton admitted to as early as 2018. In 2020, seven of his top deputies reported to the FBI that Paxton had used his office to benefit a mistress and conceal evidence of an affair. Paxton fired four of those deputies, who then filed a whistleblower lawsuit. When Paxton sought state funds to settle the lawsuit, the Texas House opened an investigation and eventually impeached him. Paxton was acquitted by the Senate on a party-line vote. The lawsuit eventually resulted in a $6.6 million judgment, and the impeachment is estimated to have cost an estimated $5.1 million—costing Texas taxpayers a total of $11.7 million.

Both Ken and Angela Paxton have consistently invoked their Christian faith as a basis for political support. Senator Paxton’s citing “biblical grounds” as a reason for the divorce petition suggests Attorney General Paxton’s conduct may conflict with the values he publicly purports to uphold. Further, there are reports that the Paxtons have rented out two Austin homes they’ve claimed as primary residences, a claim that may have saved them property taxes and provided them more favorable mortgage terms. Information in their divorce filings may illuminate whether the couple has engaged in tax and mortgage fraud.

Kuppersmith continued, “Ken Paxton is the top law enforcement officer in Texas and now a U.S. Senate candidate. The public has every right to information that may reflect upon his character.”

Campaign for Accountability is a nonpartisan, nonprofit watchdog organization that uses research, litigation, and aggressive communications to expose misconduct and malfeasance in public life and hold those who act at the expense of the public good accountable for their actions.