Texas Atty. General Ken Paxton was acquitted on Saturday

corruption

cost

as a sequel to

a historic impeachment trial

, a resounding verdict that reaffirms the power of the Republican Party’s far right and reinstates an indicted incumbent who remains under FBI investigation. That divided Republicans over whether to remove a powerful defender of former President Trump after years

scandal and criminal prosecution

.

The

result

cemented Paxton’s durability in America’s biggest red state and is a broader victory for the far right in Texas

after years of

scandal and criminal prosecution

. It also delivered a signature victory for the rising conservative wing of the Republican Party in Texas, after a dramatic process that exposed the rifts among Republicans nationally heading into 2024. More than three months after a stunning impeachment in the Republican-controlled Texas House, Paxton was just as convincingly acquitted by an extraordinary trial that exposed rifts within the Republican Party nationally in the run-up to the election of 2024. Ultimately, Paxton was fully acquitted

Senate Republicans serving with his wife, Sen. Angela Paxton said.

Angela Paxton was not allowed to vote. But she attended all two weeks of the trial, including the reading of the verdict, when all but two of the 18 Republican senators consistently voted to acquit her husband on 16 articles of impeachment accusing him of misconduct, bribery and corruption.

Ken Paxton, who was absent for most of the proceedings, was not present for the ruling.

It paves the way for Paxton to reclaim his role as Texas’ top lawyer, more than three months after his stunning impeachment in the Texas House forced him to temporarily step aside. Today, truth wins. The truth cannot be buried by mud-slinging politicians or their powerful benefactors, Paxton said. “I have often said: seek the truth! And that is what was achieved. The Senate also voted separately to reject four articles of impeachment that were not brought up during the trial. Texas Governor Greg Abbott also quickly welcomed Paxton back to office. the job just after the conclusion of the trial, which saw a former Trump candidate test how Paxton allegedly broke the law to protect one of his political donors.

The outcome is far from an end to Paxton’s problems. He remains tried on securities fraud charges, remains under a separate FBI investigation and is in danger of losing his ability to practice law in Texas over his baseless efforts to overturn the 2020 election.

The panel of 30 senators, most of whom are Republicans, deliberated behind closed doors for about eight hours before emerging for the historic vote.

The Senate is led by Republican Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who chaired Trump’s previous presidential campaigns in Texas, served as chairman of the trial. Patrick, a former conservative radio host in Houston, had said little about the case before the trial. But once it was over, he unleashed a blistering attack on the impeachment that had ever come this far. Still at the podium overseeing the trial, Patrick said the trial had been rammed through the Texas House and vowed to pursue an amendment to the state Constitution so it couldn’t happen again. Millions of taxpayer dollars have been wasted on this impeachment, Patrick said. In the Senate gallery, among those who had reserved an early seat for the impeachment vote

were three of Paxton’s former deputies who reported him to the FBI in 2020 and were key witnesses during the trial of House impeachment managers.

One of them left before the verdict was delivered, when it became clear that the votes were going Paxton’s way. About 50 members of the public took their seats in the stands as the Senate chamber reopened for voting shortly after 11 a.m. local time. Among those who picked an early seat for the impeachment vote were three former Paxton deputies who reported him to the FBI in 2020 and were key witnesses at the trial.

Impeachment managers in the House of Representatives

.

There was no visible reaction from former deputies David Maxwell, Ryan Vassar and Blake Brickman after Paxton was acquitted under Article 6, the whistleblower termination.

After the trial concluded, Angela Paxton went to her husband’s legal team and hugged them before leaving the room. Deliberations had begun Friday and the talks that lasted more than a day behind closed doors provided a rare lack of certainty about how a vote would proceed in the Texas Capitol, where a dominant Republican majority usually means outcomes are rarely in doubt . The trial took Texas Republicans into uncharted waters as they questioned whether Paxton should be impeached over allegations that he abused his office to protect a political donor under FBI investigation.

For almost ten years, Paxton

has

raised his national profile by rushing his office into polarizing court battles across the US, winning support from Trump and the far right of the Republican party.

With a final call to convict Texas’ top lawyer, impeachment managers used their closing arguments Friday to portray him as a crook who had to go.

If we don’t stop public officials from abusing the powers of their office, then frankly no one can, Republican state Rep. Andrew Murr, who helped lead the impeachment effort in the Texas House, said in his closing arguments.

In an angry and defiant rebuttal, Paxton attorney Tony Buzbee unleashed attacks on a wide range of figures both inside and outside the Texas Capitol, mocking a Texas Ranger who warned Paxton he faced charges and another prosecutor who cried on the witness stand.

Buzbee leaned on divisions among Republicans and portrayed the impeachment as a plot orchestrated by an old guard of Republican rivals. He mentioned George P. Bush, the nephew of former President George W. Bush who challenged Paxton in the 2022 Republican primaries, and punctuated a blistering closing argument that questioned the integrity of FBI agents and railed against America’s most famous political dynasty Texas.

“I would suggest to you that this is a political witch hunt,” Buzbee said. I would submit to you that this process has demonstrated, for the nation to see, a partisan struggle within the Republican Party.

The case centers on allegations that Paxton misused his office to help one of his donors, Austin real estate developer Nate Paul, who was indicted in June on charges of making false statements to banks. Paul has pleaded not guilty.

Eight of Paxton’s former deputies reported him to the FBI in 2020, launching a federal investigation that will continue regardless of the verdict. Federal prosecutors investigating Paxton testified before a grand jury in San Antonio in August, according to two people with knowledge of the case who spoke on condition of anonymity because of confidentiality rules surrounding the proceedings.

One said the grand jury heard from Drew Wicker, Paxton’s former personal assistant. During the impeachment trial, Wicker testified that he once heard a contractor tell Paxton to check with Nate about the cost of renovating the attorney general’s home in Austin.

During closing arguments, the defense told senators that either there was no evidence to support the allegations or there wasn’t enough to go beyond a reasonable doubt. The House impeachment managers, on the other hand, walked through specific documents and played excerpts of testimony from the deputies who reported Paxton to the FBI.

One of the articles of impeachment focused on an alleged extramarital affair Paxton had with Laura Olson, who worked for Paul. It claims

D

that Paul’s hiring of Olson amounted to a bribe. She was called to the witness stand, but ultimately never tested. Another article claims

D

the developer also bribed Paxton by paying for the renovation of his house.

Paxton faces a series of legal problems. In addition to the federal investigation into the same allegations that led to his impeachment, he also faces bar disciplinary proceedings over his attempt to overturn the 2020 election and has yet to stand trial on charges of state bond fraud 2015.

He pleaded not guilty in the state case

but his lawyers have said that removal from office could open the door to a settlement

.