After remaining out of the race for months, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick has endorsed Angela Paxton in the race for Senate District 8.
Angela Paxton, the wife of Attorney General Ken Paxton, is running to succeed State Sen. Van Taylor (R–Plano), who is running for Congress, as the senator from Senate District 8 in Collin and Dallas Counties. Ken Paxton represented SD 8 for two years prior to being elected to statewide office.
“I had initially decided to remain neutral in the Senate 8 contest,” Patrick said, in a web video. “But when I saw the personal attacks launched against Angela Paxton, I couldn’t remain on the sidelines any longer.”
Paxton is competing against Dallas businessman Phillip Huffines, the twin brother of State Sen. Don Huffines (R–Dallas), who represents neighboring Senate District 16.
In a statement, the Huffines campaign responded to the endorsement, accusing the Paxton campaign of themselves leveling personal attacks:
Much like Dan Patrick, we are disappointed in the personal attacks that Angela Paxton has initiated for months in this race. Going so far as to question Phillip’s pro-life beliefs. Phillip has worked with the Lt. Governor for many years on conservative causes and to help elect conservative candidates across the state. Phillip Huffines is a personal friend of the Lt. Governor, and he will work closely with him in the Texas Senate.
The endorsement comes at the end of a week in which attacks against Ken Paxton over baseless indictments cropped up in a phone survey affiliated with Huffines.
