Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is now disclosing at least eight properties to the state ethics agency, after years of saying he did not need to reveal more about the extent of his real estate interests.
Paxton, a Republican who is running for U.S. Senate, listed interests in eight different properties on his annual financial statement filed late last month with the Texas Ethics Commission. His wife, state Sen. Angela Paxton, disclosed the same properties. The records show Paxton and his wife both hold an interest in four of the properties, while the other half are held only by Paxton himself.
Angela Paxton filed for divorce on July 10, alleging adultery. The couple's assets will be a point of discussion in the proceedings.
Neither Ken nor Angela Paxton responded to questions for this story.
The Paxtons’ new property disclosures come after the Ethics Commission adopted a new rule that requires officials to disclose properties they hold in a blind trust if they have “actual knowledge” of them.
The rule was adopted after The Texas Newsroom revealed that Paxton did not list all of the properties he and his blind trust owned on his annual statements covering 2022 and 2023. Among them were six homes and parcels of land out of state purchased in the previous two years, including a luxury cabin in Oklahoma and acreage in Hawaii and Utah.
In his statement filed to the ethics commission in 2022, Paxton argued the laws “lack[ed] detail and are somewhat abstract” and said he would update his forms if needed. When eventually reached for comment, he insisted he was following the law.
“I’ve disclosed everything I’m required to disclose,” Paxton told Texas Public Radio at a campaign event in January 2024. “That's not why I'm here. I’m here to talk about what’s going on in these elections, and not talk about some made-up issue.”
Paxton disclosed even less information later that year, listing just one property in Collin County.
The annual statement Paxton filed last month, which covers 2024, is his first since the Ethics Commission passed its new disclosure rule.
On this year’s paperwork, Paxton included a note that he believes the disclosure rules are still murky. He argued instructions for how to fill out the form are contradictory and added that he was only disclosing properties “that continue to have bank notes serviced by the filer and/or the filer's spouse.”
“Related to the perimeters of reporting, the filer has attempted to comply with the laws and regulations,” Paxton wrote.
Angela Paxton, a state senator, also listed what appear to be the same eight properties on her latest annual financial statement and included the same statement about the instructions. Other details about the properties are redacted. The couple is claiming all eight properties are “home addresses.”
The Texas Newsroom requested copies of the Paxtons’ financial statement that included addresses, other than for the couple’s primary family home in McKinney. But the Office of the Attorney General, which referees public records disputes, determined all the properties could be counted as home addresses and their locations redacted.
While the Paxtons did disclose additional properties this year, the list still does not appear to be complete. According to public property records The Texas Newsroom reviewed, Ken Paxton, the couple or their blind trust continue to own at least 10 properties across five states. It’s unclear which two were omitted from the disclosures due to the redactions.
Neither Paxton disclosed any properties under rental income either, even though it appears the blind trust holds at least one rental property in Florida. Paxton’s Oklahoma cabin, which he owns under his name, is also available for rent.
The Paxtons also appear to have disclosed one additional property previously unknown to the public: a piece of land held in the blind trust. The 42 acres is in Johnson County, according to the Paxtons’ statements, but The Texas Newsroom was unable to locate records of this property.
In her petition for divorce, Angela Paxton is requesting that she temporarily be awarded the “exclusive use and possession” of the couple’s longtime family home in McKinney, as well as “furniture, furnishings, and other personal property” there. Ken Paxton filed a general denial in response to her petition.
On Friday, Angela Paxton asked that the court records be sealed. The judge on the case granted the order next day. If the seal remains in place, the couple could avoid the details of their divorce becoming fodder for political opponents during Ken Paxton's upcoming campaign.
Paxton is challenging U.S. Sen. John Cornyn in the Republican primary. Cornyn, a former attorney general himself, has criticized Paxton for past corruption allegations.
During his more than two decades in elected office, Paxton has repeatedly been accused of bribery, fraud and self dealing. He has never been convicted of a crime. Last year, he cut a deal to do community service and pay restitution in order to avoid trial on state securities fraud charges. The case was closed in June after he completed the terms of the deal.
The extent of Paxton’s real estate interests were first revealed by The Wall Street Journal. The outlet reported in 2023 that lawyers hired to investigate the attorney general for alleged abuse of office were looking into a recent buying spree. Paxton’s alleged infidelity was central to the case; he allegedly secured a job for the woman with whom he was having an affair with a businessman accused of bribing him.
Paxton was impeached based on the corruption allegations but beat the charges.
