Cornyn campaign seeks records on Paxton trips with mistress, raising questions about taxpayer funding

In a sharp escalation of Texas' bitter political feud, Senator John Cornyn's re-election team filed a Texas Public Information Act request seeking records that could show whether Attorney General Ken Paxton used state resources to bankroll trips with his mistress, Tracy Duhon, dating back to March 2024. The request aims to determine whether Paxton invoked official travel for private purposes or to hide an extramarital relationship, according to campaign officials.

The Cornyn campaign said taxpayers deserve to know whether Paxton used official resources to fund personal travel or if such trips conflicted with his duties to the state. The information request was filed Wednesday with Paxton's office and cites a Daily Mail article published September 12 that described Paxton as traveling across the country and overseas to meet Duhon, a 57-year-old Christian influencer. Paxton did not respond to Daily Mail requests for comment by the time of publication. The campaign’s senior adviser, Matt Mackowiak, told the Daily Mail that the records could reveal whether public funds were used to sustain the relationship and whether any travel would have violated state responsibilities.

The dispute comes amid a broader, longstanding political crosswinds surrounding Paxton. The Daily Mail’s reporting included details of trips paired with a separate public fallout from his personal life, including a Kentucky Derby appearance in May 2024 featuring Paxton with Duhon. The publication also described how Duhon posted about her marriage history and life as a mother of seven, while insiders characterized Paxton’s interest in her as a core element of the ongoing controversy surrounding his personal and professional conduct.

The campaign battle has roots in Paxton’s prior ethics and personal-life scandals. Paxton was impeached by the Texas House in 2023 amid allegations of using his office and taking bribes to benefit a donor, a charge he rejected and was ultimately acquitted by the Texas Senate. The affair with Duhon arrives on the heels of Paxton’s earlier romance with Laura Olson, a former Senate aide who was central to the impeachment narrative. The political tremors extend to Paxton’s marriage to Angela Paxton, who announced a separation after nearly four decades of marriage, with postings on X signaling strains within the couple’s relationship since this summer.

In the wake of the latest revelations, Cornyn has framed the issue as part of a broader test of loyalty to conservative voters who prioritize religious faith and family values. The Daily Mail report quickly became a weapon in Cornyn’s campaign, which has sought to position the longtime senator as the reliable, pro-family option in a race that has narrowed to a contest between two high-profile Republicans within the same party. Polling in recent weeks has shown the Paxton-Cornyn dynamics fluctuating, with voter sentiment tightening in the wake of Angela Paxton’s public divorce announcement and ongoing scrutiny of Paxton’s governing conduct.

As Paxton’s office declines to comment on the specific travel-record request, the Texas Public Information Act process is expected to determine whether public resources were used for personal travel. The outcome could influence Republican primary dynamics and, more broadly, the national conversation about ethics, governance, and accountability in state leadership as Paxton seeks a higher office while defending an established role as attorney general.