Judge blocks Ken Paxton's ActBlue lawsuit as likely political retaliation

On June 11, 2026 U.S. District Judge Richard Stearns (D. Mass.) issued a preliminary injunction barring Paxton, his employees and agents from pursuing a Texas civil enforcement suit against the Democratic fundraising platform ActBlue or bringing another based on the same conduct. The suit, filed in April 2026 under the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act, alleged ActBlue misled consumers about donation safeguards. The judge found ActBlue likely to succeed on its claim that the attorney general used his enforcement authority to punish protected political activity, pointing to the timing (his office's inquiry began in December 2023, was largely inactive for about a year and a half, and the suit followed ActBlue's fundraising for Paxton's Senate opponent James Talarico) and to Paxton's public statements. The judge did not decide whether ActBlue violated campaign finance law, and a preliminary injunction is not a final ruling. Paxton called it a "flawed ruling by a Clinton-appointed Massachusetts judge" and said "Texas has every right to enforce its own laws to protect our citizens." He appealed to the First Circuit, and his opening brief was filed in August 2026; the appeal is pending.