Paxton Pursues Senate, but Who Will run for Attorney General?

With Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) entering the Senate race to oust Texas Senator John Cornyn (R), Texas now looks for its next attorney general. One candidate has already announced his candidacy, and more are expected to follow.

This week, Attorney General Paxton announced that he was heading toward greener pastures by launching a campaign for the U.S. Senate. This means that he will go head-to-head with fellow Texan Senator Cornyn. Senator Cornyn, who's facing mounting criticism over his time in the senate as well as his previous comments about President Donald Trump (R), has responded to Attorney General Paxton's campaign by calling the attorney general a "fraud".

With that race gearing up to be a hotly-contested race, the question persists, who will be the Lone Star state's next attorney general?

John Bash, a former attorney for President Trump and a former clerk for both Justice Antonin Scalia and Justice Brett Kavanaugh, is the first candidate to enter the race.

In a social media post, Bash announced his candidate for attorney general, assuring that he will be "the toughest, most battle-tested attorney."

"I'm running for Texas Attorney General because our great State needs the toughest, most battle-tested attorney to lead the fight to keep our communities safe, defend our constitutional rights, and make sure Texas remains a leader in innovation and growth," Bash wrote on X. "Let's get to work."

Vinny Minchillo, a Republican consultant based in Plano, Texas, believes that other Republicans will follow in joining the race.

During a recent interview with Inside Texas Politics, Minchillo opined, "I don't know if Louie Gohmert jumps in, [but] our own [Dallas Mayor] Eric Johnson, his name has been kicked around. [State Rep.] Mitch Little is a name. [State Senator] Bryan Hughes is a name." “That job doesn't open up very often, so, you'll have a big field [of candidates].”