End Citizens United Names Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton to 2026 Most Corrupt Politicians List

WASHINGTON, DC — End Citizens United (ECU), a leading national anti-corruption organization, today named Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton to its 2026 Most Corrupt Politicians List. Paxton has a lengthy history of ethics violations, including an impeachment on bribery and abuse of office charges, a litany of corruption lawsuits, sweetheart plea deals for child sex offenders, and a pattern of using elected office to benefit himself and his wealthy donors. Read more coverage about the announcement in the Austin American-Statesman.

“Ken Paxton has spent his career as Attorney General serving one person: himself,” said End Citizens United President Tiffany Muller. “He has used the power of his office to protect his own interests, reward the wealthy donors who help keep him in power, and leave Texas families paying the price. That’s not public service. That’s textbook corruption. Now he wants a promotion to the U.S. Senate to bring the same pay-to-play politics he practiced in Texas to Washington. We’re going to make sure voters understand his career-long betrayal and hold him accountable at the ballot box this year.”

ECU’s 2026 Most Corrupt Politicians List highlights elected officials whose corrupt actions consistently align with personal interests over those of their constituents. Paxton has faced two felony indictments for securities fraud and impeachment by the Texas House of Representatives after he fired whistleblowers who reported him to the FBI for bribery and abuse of office, costing taxpayers millions. His wealth has grown beyond reason for an attorney general whose salary is $153,000, evidenced by his 15 properties across multiple states worth millions. Paxton has been too distracted protecting his own interests to serve the public, leading to serious failures like negotiating a plea deal of just one day in jail in a case of repeated sexual assault against a child, where an admitted pedophile did not have to register as a sex offender in Texas.

Paxton’s campaigns have been heavily funded by business and special interests, including $448,000 from the data center industry while Paxton stalled a decision in the Attorney General’s office. Paxton also raked in $2.2 million from his investments in Watchguard, after voting for a spending bill that allowed the company to receive lucrative state contracts. His Senate candidacy is further supported by $500,000 in spending by a pro-cryptocurrency super PAC.

In the coming months, ECU will conduct sustained earned media and direct voter engagement to hold Paxton accountable. As corruption becomes a defining issue in the Texas senatorial race, ECU has endorsed State Rep. James Talarico, who offers a stark contrast to Paxton by rejecting corporate PAC money and running a campaign that centers on anti-corruption reform.

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For 10 Years, End Citizens United (ECU) has been dedicated to combating the two biggest challenges facing our democracy: the corrosive impact of Big Money in politics and attempts to block access to the ballot box. Since its founding in 2015, ECU has had over 1.4 million donors with an average donation of just $14. The group has more than four million members nationwide and is one of the nation’s leading anti-corruption organizations.