Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton's office has sued Harris County on Thursday, alleging the county violated the Texas Constitution by using social media advertisements to encourage voting among Latino, Asian, and African American residents while excluding white voters.
The lawsuit challenges a county "Get Out the Vote" campaign that allegedly used Meta's advertising tools to target users on Facebook and Instagram based on racial, ethnic, and cultural interests. The complaint argues the campaign violated the Texas Constitution's Equal Rights Amendment by directing voter outreach toward selected racial and ethnic groups.
Paxton's office is seeking a temporary restraining order to prevent Harris County from continuing to run the advertisements. The lawsuit contends there was no legitimate reason to target the identified minority communities without also directing the advertisements toward European ethnic groups.
Paxton recused himself from the case, according to his office's announcement. His recusal comes as he campaigns in a competitive U.S. Senate race.
Harris County Attorney Abbie Kamin said her office is reviewing what she described as a politically motivated lawsuit. She defended the county's voter information efforts, saying they are intended to ensure residents across the diverse county have access to election information.
"We believe the County's efforts to ensure all voters in our diverse county have access to voter information are legal," said Kamin, adding that the county remains focused on election operations and protecting eligible voters' ballots.
U.S. Rep. Christian Menefee, a Democrat who represents parts of Harris County, also criticized the lawsuit. He said Paxton was challenging the county's outreach because voters were participating in the election and urged eligible residents to vote.
The case places Harris County's targeted voter outreach under legal scrutiny, with the attorney general's office arguing that race-conscious advertising violates state constitutional protections and county officials defending the campaign as an effort to expand access to voter information.
