Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s laundry list of corruption accusations and scandals continues to grow.
After recent reports that the Republican nominee for US senate withheld rental income and mortgages from financial disclosures, took money from Kalshi’s CEO then sat out efforts to regulate prediction markets, gifted himself six figures from a cell tower in Frisco, cozied up to the judge that sealed his depositions, and grew his real estate portfolio to 15 homes worth $9 million despite only making $153,000 a year as a public servant, a new allegation has come to light: That Ken Paxton repeatedly accepted campaign donations from disgraced Southern Baptist leader Paul Pressler—even after eight men publicly accused him of sexually abusing them as children, according to Meidas News.
Pressler, a former Texas judge, state representative, and leader of the Southern Baptist Convention, was accused by eight men of repeatedly raping and abusing boys over several decades.
He faced a high-profile civil lawsuit filed by Gareld Duane Rollins Jr. in 2017, who accused Pressler of sexual abuse starting when Rollins was a teenager. In December 2023, Rollins and the defendants reached a confidential agreement to settle the civil lawsuit before Pressler died in June 2024 at the age of 94.
Prior to the lawsuit, there were “abundant suspicions” of misconduct dating back to the 1970s, according to an investigation from Texas Monthly, and “four decades worth of allegations” about Pressler’s predatory behavior.
Pressler was forced to leave his job leading a youth group after his church learned of an alleged incident at his house with a young church member in 1978. In the late 1980s, a colleague said it was “obvious his behavior was predatory” and chronicled claims made against him. As a part of Rollins’ lawsuit in 2017, seven other men also came forward with accusations against Pressler.
Despite all this information, Paxton—who already had a history of working closely with Pressler prior to 2017—kept accepting his endorsement, taking his money, and continued to publicly praise him.
Paxton touted a “major endorsement” from Pressler in 2013 and described him as a man that he has “admired and respected for so many years.” He has never condemned or spoken out against the alleged abuse, and instead continued to accept campaign donations from Pressler and his wife, Nancy—who was accused of helping Paul cover up his abuse.
According to the Texas Ethics Commission, Paul donated to Paxton five times—twice in 2016, once in 2017, once in 2018, and once in 2022—and Nancy donated twice in 2022 and 2023.
Paxton also had relationships with Pressler’s inner circle, including Jared Woodfill—Pressler’s long-time law partner who allegedly provided Pressler with a “string of young, male personal assistants,” despite knowing Pressler’s history of sexual abuse. Paxton campaigned for Woodfill when he ran for House District 138 in 2024, speaking at a reception for Woodfill and filming an endorsement video. Woodfill also donated to Paxton’s campaign, and was a “loyalist” during his impeachment trial.
Paxton also endorsed and publicly defended Justice John Devine, a longtime political ally of Pressler who worked at his law firm while the alleged sexual abuse was occuring. When the lawsuit against Pressler reached the Texas Supreme Court over its statute of limitations, Devine refused to recuse himself and voted in the minority to drop the sexual abuse suit.
The news of Paxton’s connection to Pressler comes as he continues to face criticism for the sweetheart deal he gave to admitted child molester Adam Hoffman, who spent just days in jail and didn’t have to register as a sex offender in Texas. Paxton is also under fire for taking campaign donations from the Jaffe family—a Texas real estate and aviation dynasty that appears in two separate batches of the Epstein files
Paxton will face Democratic nominee James Talarico in the race for US Senate in Texas on Nov. 3. Early voting begins Oct. 19. Voter registration in Texas ends on Oct. 5. You can check to see if you’re registered to vote here.
