Despite his own claims, and the records of the Texas House, a new investigative report has found that State Rep. Cole Hefner was not present during the vote to impeach Attorney General Ken Paxton. Instead, he was using a government-owned plane for personal purposes.
KHOU 11 uncovered the discrepancy as part of a larger investigation into the use of the TxDOT jets.
Hefner (R-Mount Pleasant) used a TxDOT jet for “state business” to fly from Austin to Mount Pleasant on May 27, 2023—the day of the impeachment.
According to TxDOT records reviewed by KHOU 11, the state jet was in the air from 12:32 p.m. to 1:14 p.m.
However, the House Journal lists Hefner as “present” at 1:03 p.m. when the roll was called.
Instead, Hefner attended his daughter’s graduation, which began at 2 p.m. At that same time, lawmakers in the House were listening to the debate over whether to impeach Paxton.
A pilot himself, records show Hefner’s personal plane left Mount Pleasant just after 3 p.m. and landed in Austin at 4:45 p.m., the same time as the impeachment vote.
While the House journal again lists Hefner as present and voting in favor of the impeachment, a video shows that his seatmate pushed the button for the vote. Hefner is nowhere to be seen.
While “ghost voting” is common when members need to step out of the chamber, it is still required that members at least be in the building.
“A member must be on the floor of the house or in an adjacent room or hallway on the same level as the house floor, in order to vote,” reads the law.
In an interview with local media, Hefner said, “I stand by my vote.”
Yet, he was not even present for either the debate or the vote.
Hefner did not respond to Texas Scorecard’s request for comment.
