Mayes Middleton Must Win: Texas Cannot Afford an Attorney General Who Won’t Fight

Standing for Texas: Why Mayes Middleton Must Win the Battle for Attorney General

By: Amil Imani

 Let’s be honest: following Ken Paxton is not a job for the faint of heart. For years he took hit after hit from the left, from the media, and from the Austin establishment, and he still delivered victory after victory for Texas. He fought federal overreach in court and won. He fought the Biden administration and won. Whoever steps into that office next inherits a target on their back and a bar set sky-high.

That’s exactly why Mayes Middleton is the man for this fight.

Middleton is not a career politician looking for his next promotion. He is not soft, he is not cautious, and he does not go along to get along. Throughout his time in the Texas Senate, and now on the campaign trail, he has made a habit of taking on the political establishment head-on, even when it costs him friends and favors in Austin.

Take the Austin Swamp. While plenty of politicians talk about draining it, Middleton went after it. He filed legislation to bar public funds from being used to hire lobbyists, a move fellow Republican Steve Toth called a “finger in the eye of the lobbyists.” That is not how you win friends on the capitol cocktail circuit. That is how you fight for the taxpayers who are sick and tired of watching their own money get used against them.

He does not flinch when the radical left comes swinging, either. When Middleton championed a bill allowing voluntary prayer and Bible study in public schools, American Atheists sent him a formal letter of condemnation. A lot of politicians would have buried that letter in a drawer. Middleton put it on display. He knows exactly what side he is on, and he is proud of it, condemnation letters and all.

On the campaign trail, Middleton does not mince words. He is running on one mission: stopping the left cold. He points to his real record drafting and defending conservative laws against wave after wave of Democratic legal challenges as proof that he has the resolve to hold the line as Attorney General. This is not a man who talks tough behind a podium and folds under pressure. This is a man with a track record of standing his ground when it actually mattered.

That fearless attitude is exactly why supporters and endorsers alike describe him as a true “fearless conservative,” one who takes the fight directly to radical policies instead of waiting for someone else to do it. It is why heavyweights like Ken Paxton, Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick, and other America First leaders have thrown their full support behind his campaign. They know a fighter when they see one.

Born in Wallisville, Middleton comes from generations of Texas ranching and farming families, deep roots that go back further than most political resumes can claim. He runs Middleton Oil Company and manages ranching, cattle, and farming operations across the state. He holds finance and law degrees from the University of Texas at Austin. That background, boardrooms and ranches instead of backroom deals, is exactly what keeps him independent from the political establishment he is now running to hold accountable.

Middleton entered the Texas House of Representatives in 2019 and quickly rose to lead the Texas House Freedom Caucus. Since moving to the Senate to represent District 11, he has built one of the most conservative voting records in the entire legislature. He rejects a state pension. He turns down taxpayer-funded healthcare. He donates his entire legislative salary to local charities. That is not political theater. That is a man who lives what he preaches.

The November 2026 general election against Dallas Democrat Nathan Johnson is not a routine race, and Texans need to treat it that way. This is a defensive line for the entire state. If Republicans lose this office, Texas loses one of its strongest legal shields against federal overreach, the very shield that stopped border catastrophes, blocked unconstitutional mandates, and pushed back against Washington bureaucrats who think they know better than Texans. We cannot afford a weak Attorney General who rolls over the first time Washington applies pressure.

Nathan Johnson represents everything Texans have spent years fighting against a return to open borders, deference to federal regulators, and an Attorney General’s office that goes soft the moment it faces real opposition. Electing him would hand that shield straight back to the people who want to tear it down.

Mayes Middleton has proven, repeatedly, that he has the backbone for the trenches. He does not back down. He does not apologize for fighting hard. And he will not let Texas go undefended.

I will support him to protect Texas, just like Ken Paxton did before him.