Chip Roy

AUSTIN — Voters were choosing Tuesday who they believe should be the state’s next attorney general, a powerful elected office that has been used in recent years to further a conservative agenda.

On the Republican side, Galveston state Sen. Mayes Middleton and U.S. Rep. Chip Roy of Austin have been engaged in a bitter battle of personalities, each claiming that the other is unfit to serve in a post that has been a stepping stone to higher office.

The Democrats – former Galveston Mayor Joe Jaworski and Dallas state Sen. Nathan Johnson, are also locked in a runoff, though one of a far more understated tone.

They are seeking to replace Attorney General Ken Paxton, who chose not to seek reelection in favor of a run for Senate.

The Republicans in the race have described it as an existential war to secure the future of Texas, often using anti-Islamic rhetoric and portraying their Democratic counterparts as evil. On policy, Roy and Middleton share much of the same conservative agenda.

But the two have relentlessly attacked each other’s character and experience in deeply personal terms, leaving some voters uneasy about whether the party can unite behind a single candidate after months of harsh invective.

Roy has said Middleton has no significant legal experience and that he is using his personal wealth to buy the office. Middleton, who runs his family’s oil business, has spent more than $16 million of his own fortune on his campaign.

Meanwhile, Middleton has attacked Roy over his past clashes with President Donald Trump, repeatedly highlighting Roy’s comments after the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot that Trump had engaged in “impeachable conduct.”

The Democrats believe Middleton and Roy’s hard-line stances and their continued assaults on each other leave them an opening to win in November, after more than 30 years of losing statewide races.

Johnson and Jaworski have engaged in a far more muted affair and a fraction of the money pushing their causes. However, the two have not fully abstained from taking swipes at each other.

Johnson has called Jaworski a “loser” for his history of election losses, including the 2022 Democratic runoff for attorney general. In turn, Jaworski has attacked Johnson’s Senate voting record, accusing the two-term senator of being a Democratic turncoat.

It has also served as a springboard to higher office for its previous occupants. Sen. John Cornyn served as attorney general for one term before being elected to the Senate in 2002. Gov. Greg Abbott also held the office for about 12 years before voters sent him to the Governor’s Mansion in 2015.