Angela Paxton, the estranged wife of Texas GOP Senate nominee Ken Paxton, has released a new ad urging voters to support the Republican ticket despite her ongoing divorce from her husband. Without naming Ken Paxton directly, she argued that voters should prioritize keeping Republican-held seats rather than focusing on individual candidates. Newsweek reached out to Ken Paxton via email for comment on Sunday.
The message comes as Paxton trails Democratic nominee James Talarico in several recent polls, including a New York Times/Siena survey showing Talarico ahead by six percentage points. Paxton, who was impeached by the Texas House in 2023 and later acquitted by the Texas Senate, enters the race carrying years of political controversies that opponents continue to highlight. Ken and Angela Paxton's daughter, Mattie Hayworth, has also entered the campaign conversation through a separate ad defending her father and criticizing Democratic policies.
Texas Republicans are fighting to hold a seat that was once considered safely Republican. Ken Paxton's political baggage, combined with unexpectedly strong Democratic polling, has increased the stakes for a race that could have national implications for Senate control. Angela Paxton has stepped directly into the spotlight of Texas' closely watched Senate race, delivering perhaps her clearest public signal yet that she wants Republicans to rally behind her estranged husband's candidacy.
In a new advertisement released weeks before Election Day, the Republican state senator acknowledges what she called "the elephant in the room" while carefully avoiding mentioning Ken Paxton by name. "Let's talk about the elephant in the room," she said in the ad. "In a general election, it's not as much about the individual players on the team.
It's about getting the whole team across the finish line." She goes on to argue that Republicans should focus on maintaining control of elected offices rather than dwelling on concerns about any one candidate. "Either we hold every Republican seat or we hand the future of Texas to the other team," she said. "That's why I'm voting for the Republican ticket on November 3." Angela Paxton is a Republican state senator who represents an area centered around McKinney in North Texas.
Before entering office, she worked as a teacher, counselor and educator. She was first elected to the Texas Senate in 2018 and has often focused on issues including education, faith and conservative policy priorities. Angela and Ken Paxton met while attending Baylor University in Texas, got married in 1986 and built much of their political careers in parallel.
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