Texas State Senate Acquits Attorney General Ken Paxton on 16 Different Articles of Impeachment

The Texas state senate voted to acquit attorney general Ken Paxton on 16 separate articles of impeachment after the state house of representatives passed a similar motion in late May.

Had Paxton been convicted on any of the counts, he would have been removed from office and faced a subsequent vote to permanently bar him from public office in Texas. The vote came after 30 state senators, 19 of whom are Republicans, deliberated for nearly eight hours in a closed-door session following earlier deliberations before the upper chamber.

Paxton’s legal troubles came following an agreement reached with four former aides who accused him of wrongful retaliation, which culminated in a multimillion-dollar settlement in February. At the time, the state attorney general asked the Texas legislature to set aside taxpayer funds for the settlement.