AUSTIN (KXAN) — On the same day the Texas Senate is expected to take a key vote on how it will conduct the impeachment trial of suspended Attorney General Ken Paxton, a new poll shows how voters are feeling about the process that led to this moment.
Pollsters from the Texas Politics Project and the University of Texas at Austin asked a group of 1,200 registered voters recently whether they thought the Texas House of Representatives was justified in impeaching Paxton. An early look at their findings, which came out Tuesday, showed 50% of the respondents agreed that, yes, the lawmakers’ decision to impeach the three-term Republican is justified. Meanwhile, 17% called the impeachment unjustified, while 33% either had no opinion about it or did not know enough to share their feelings.
Additionally, the pollsters broke down their results by party affiliation. It’s perhaps unsurprising that a vast majority of Democratic voters (73%) found the House’s impeachment of Paxton justified, while only 6% of Democrats felt it wasn’t and 21% had no opinion.
Republicans, though, are closely divided on their thoughts about what the House did. Among the GOP respondents to this poll, 31% said the Paxton impeachment was justified. A plurality, 39%, currently shared no opinion, and 30% said it was not justified.
By a margin of 121-23, the Texas House voted to impeach Paxton on May 27. This came two days after the House Committee on General Investigating brought forward 20 articles of impeachment to the full chamber. The articles, or accusations, are the result of a two-month investigation that began after Paxton asked to use state funds to settle a $3.3 million whistleblower lawsuit filed by four former employees emerged. Paxton is accused of bribery and abusing his office over the years to benefit Nate Paul, an Austin-based real estate developer and one of Paxton’s campaign donors.
Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick named seven senators to a special committee tasked with crafting the rules for how the Senate will convene as an impeachment court, with the trial itself set to happen no later than Aug. 28 . This group has met ever since behind closed doors, and it’s anticipated they’ll lay out their recommendations Tuesday evening to the full chamber when the Senate reconvenes at 6 p.m.
It remains unclear whether the rules will affect the involvement of Sen. Angela Paxton, R-Carrollton, who could serve as a juror during her husband’s impeachment trial. Critics called for her to recuse herself because of her personal relationship, but she released a statement on social media Monday signaling she plans to participate in it fully.
Paxton remains suspended without pay from his position as attorney general until the Senate reaches a verdict in the impeachment trial. In the meantime, Gov. Greg Abbott appointed John Scott, the former Texas secretary of state, to serve as interim attorney general.
AUSTIN (KXAN) — On the same day the Texas Senate is expected to take a key vote on how it will conduct the impeachment trial of suspended Attorney General Ken Paxton, a new poll shows how voters are feeling about the process that led to this moment.
Pollsters from the Texas Politics Project and the University of Texas at Austin asked a group of 1,200 registered voters recently whether they thought the Texas House of Representatives was justified in impeaching Paxton. An early look at their findings, which came out Tuesday, showed 50% of the respondents agreed that, yes, the lawmakers’ decision to impeach the three-term Republican is justified. Meanwhile, 17% called the impeachment unjustified, while 33% either had no opinion about it or did not know enough to share their feelings.
Additionally, the pollsters broke down their results by party affiliation. It’s perhaps unsurprising that a vast majority of Democratic voters (73%) found the House’s impeachment of Paxton justified, while only 6% of Democrats felt it wasn’t and 21% had no opinion.
Republicans, though, are closely divided on their thoughts about what the House did. Among the GOP respondents to this poll, 31% said the Paxton impeachment was justified. A plurality, 39%, currently shared no opinion, and 30% said it was not justified.
By a margin of 121-23, the Texas House voted to impeach Paxton on May 27. This came two days after the House Committee on General Investigating brought forward 20 articles of impeachment to the full chamber. The articles, or accusations, are the result of a two-month investigation that began after Paxton asked to use state funds to settle a $3.3 million whistleblower lawsuit filed by four former employees emerged. Paxton is accused of bribery and abusing his office over the years to benefit Nate Paul, an Austin-based real estate developer and one of Paxton’s campaign donors.
Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick named seven senators to a special committee tasked with crafting the rules for how the Senate will convene as an impeachment court, with the trial itself set to happen no later than Aug. 28. This group has met ever since behind closed doors, and it’s anticipated they’ll lay out their recommendations Tuesday evening to the full chamber when the Senate reconvenes at 6 p.m.
It remains unclear whether the rules will affect the involvement of Sen. Angela Paxton, R-Carrollton, who could serve as a juror during her husband’s impeachment trial. Critics called for her to recuse herself because of her personal relationship, but she released a statement on social media Monday signaling she plans to participate in it fully.
Paxton remains suspended without pay from his position as attorney general until the Senate reaches a verdict in the impeachment trial. In the meantime, Gov. Greg Abbott appointed John Scott, the former Texas secretary of state, to serve as interim attorney general.