By Amarillo Pioneer’s Publisher’s Committee
In the race for Texas Attorney General, four Republicans are seeking to serve as the state’s top legal and law enforcement official.
While all four candidates hold well-crafted resumes, the race is about more than personality. In all essence, this race is a classic contest pitting the state’s political establishment versus the outsiders.
On behalf of the establishment stands Land Commissioner George P. Bush and former Texas Supreme Court Justice Eva Guzman. In the corner of the conservative outsiders stands incumbent Attorney General Ken Paxton and U.S. Rep. Louie Gohmert.
Bush and Guzman both hold problematic records in their respective positions, so Texans should be extremely hesitant about handing the keys to the Attorney General’s office to either one of these two establishment players. Bush has a spotty record as Land Commissioner including controversy over his handling of the Alamo historical site, while Guzman was never known as a conservative member of the Texas Supreme Court, but has since made a sharp right turn on the issues despite having almost no substance to back up her stances on the positions.
That leaves just the two outsiders, and of these two candidates, only one truly has the campaign operation and funding needed to hold back the establishment’s bid to take Texas’ top legal office.
Paxton, while imperfect in many ways, does have experience in the position and an endorsement from former President Donald Trump. Paxton has served in the job for eight years and while his record has been spotty on a few occasions, he does have a fairly solid track record of conservative success as Attorney General.
Gohmert, while perhaps a better conservative voice, has a relatively lackluster campaign operation. Gohmert got into the race for Attorney General at the eleventh hour and has struggled to put together anything resembling a statewide campaign until just recently. Still, many questions remain about how strong his campaign operation is and whether it will ever kick into gear to make a successful run statewide.
When comparing Paxton and Gohmert side-by-side, there is much that is the same about both contenders. Both men are allies of Trump, both men have conservative credentials, and both men have accomplished legal careers – Paxton as Attorney General and as an attorney in private practice and Gohmert as a district judge and court of appeals judge.
While the two men have fairly even records in terms of conservative credentials, the polling of this race and the funding raised by the candidates paints a clearer picture of who is ahead and who has the best chance of holding off the establishment favorite, whether that ultimately ends up being Bush or Guzman.
According to a new UT-Dallas poll, Paxton is ahead in the race for Attorney General, but is still well within the margin to go a runoff. Paxton held the support of 33 percent of voters, followed by Bush at 19 percent, Gohmert at 8 percent, and Guzman at 7 percent.
In terms of fundraising, Guzman leads the field with $5.3 million in contributions, followed by Bush at $5.1 million, Paxton at $2.5 million, and Gohmert at $1 million.
As you can see, the polling shows Paxton ahead, but in terms of money, there is plenty of establishment money flowing in these contests to change the tide of the election. And that is a very, very bad thing for voters who are not excited about electing yet another establishment pawn to statewide office.
Judging solely based on where the race stands today, there is only one candidate who appears to be in a position to hold off the establishment, and that is Paxton. Paxton is by no means a perfect candidate – or a perfect elected official – but realistically, he is the only candidate in the field who can prevent the establishment from cruising to victory in this election.
Voters who are looking at Gohmert as an option should not feel ashamed about looking his way. He is a fine congressman who has an undeniable track record as a conservative fighter. But, at this point in the game, he is nowhere close to winning a statewide election, nor does he have the kind of organization and funding needed to win a statewide runoff election against Bush or Guzman.
For realists, there is only one candidate in this race who can prevent an Attorney General George P. Bush or an Attorney General Eva Guzman. And that person is Ken Paxton.
We recommend Ken Paxton for Texas Attorney General in the March Republican primary election.
Early voting runs February 14-25. Election Day is March 1.
Please note: A publisher’s committee endorsement does not necessarily represent the views or opinions of the Amarillo Pioneer’s advertisers or staff. An endorsement of one candidate in a primary does not represent a criticism of other candidates running unless otherwise stated. Endorsements may be offered in additional primary races.