It is not clear if Paxton, whose salary as Texas’ attorney general is $153,750 a year, paid for the watch himself
Credit: Ken Paxton/Facebook; Hublot
NEED TO KNOW
- Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, the Donald Trump-endorsed Republican candidate for Senate, was criticized by his Democratic opponent for wearing a luxury watch that costs tens of thousands of dollars on the campaign trail
- “Nothing says you understand the affordability crisis like wearing a $41,000 watch and a Four Seasons polo,” Democratic nominee James Talarico said
- Paxton’s campaign did not acknowledge his opponent’s comments on the watch nor deny the price tag
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, the Donald Trump-endorsed Republican candidate for Senate, was criticized by his Democratic opponent for wearing a luxury watch that costs tens of thousands of dollars on the campaign trail.
“Nothing says you understand the affordability crisis like wearing a $41,000 watch and a Four Seasons polo,” Democratic nominee James Talarico, 37, wrote on X on Sunday, Aug. 30, after Paxton, 63, posted a photo of himself wearing the watch and a purple shirt sporting the Four Seasons Orlando’s golf club logo.
In a statement to PEOPLE on Monday, Aug. 31, Paxton’s campaign spokesperson Madison Cercy wrote that the Texas attorney general “is proud of his successful career outside of public service, including running his own small business as a lawyer.”
“Meanwhile, James Talarico is a 37-year-old man who shares a bank account with his mother, and the only job he has ever held in public service involves using his position of power to corruptly enrich himself,” Cercy said, referencing Talarico’s financial disclosures that showed a joint checking account he shares with his mother, and his roughly $83,000 in earnings from working for an education consulting firm.
Paxton’s campaign did not acknowledge his opponent’s comments on the watch nor deny the price tag.
Nothing says you understand the affordability crisis like wearing a $41,000 watch and a Four Seasons polo. https://t.co/4yl3iQjcq7
— James Talarico (@jamestalarico) August 30, 2026
Progressive commentator Brian Tyler Cohen highlighted the photo of Paxton campaigning with supporters in San Antonio over the weekend and suggested the watch was a Hublot Aerofusion King Gold — which has a retail price of $41,600.
Public polling of the race suggests Talarico is leading by a few percentage points in Texas, where a Democrat hasn’t been elected to statewide office since 1994.
It was not clear if Paxton, whose salary as Texas’ attorney general is $153,750 a year, paid for the watch himself or was gifted it. The Wall Street Journal reported last year that Paxton’s tax returns and bank records show he became a multimillionaire despite working in state government for 20 years.
Credit: Ken Paxton/Facebook
Derek Guy, a writer and critic of men’s fashion and its intersection with politics, joked on X that “to be honest, $40k is not that much money for a mechanical watch. That’s about how much a pound of ground beef costs in the US nowadays.”
During an appearance on Fox News’ Sunday Briefing, Paxton was not asked about the watch, but did defend himself from scrutiny of his finances by Talarico and current Sen. John Cornyn, a Republican whom Paxton beat in the primary.
Fox News senior White House correspondent Jacqui Heinrich pressed Paxton to respond directly to a Talarico campaign ad stating that “Paxton’s net worth has increased 7,000%” and “he now owns 15 homes while most Texans can’t afford one.”
“I’m proud of what I did in private business, as a practicing attorney,” Paxton said. “I was a successful lawyer, successful business guy, and I tried to invest money unlike my opponent who has not been successful in anything.”
Credit: Brandon Bell/Getty (2)
The New York Times reported in July that Paxton owns at least 15 properties valued at around $9 million in total, including four condominiums at a luxury resort two hours from Las Vegas, a luxury cabin in Oklahoma, three homes in Florida, and land in Hawaii.
Paxton has long denied any wrongdoing connected to his personal wealth and actions in office. He maintained his innocence during a federal criminal fraud investigation that resulted in dropped charges, as well as during a 2023 impeachment trial that included allegations of bribery and ended in acquittal by the Republican majority in the Texas statehouse.
“Every time a fighter like Donald Trump and Ken Paxton stand up to the political elite, the same playbook comes out: dig through a man’s private life, string together puzzle pieces to draw the most damning conclusion,” Cercy, the Paxton spokesperson, told the Times in response to its July report.
The real estate portfolio is one issue being addressed in Paxton’s divorce with his wife, Angela — a Texas state senator who accused him of adultery and filed for the divorce in July 2025 “on biblical grounds” and “in light of recent discoveries” after 38 years of marriage.
Last year, the Times reported that Paxton and his estranged wife declared three separate Texas homes as their primary residence on mortgage documents — a move that the Trump administration has threatened to prosecute the president’s political opponents over, including California Sen. Adam Schiff, New York Attorney General Letitia James and Federal Reserve Gov. Lisa Cook.
Credit: NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP via Getty
“At a time when millions of Americans are fighting to survive under high home mortgage rates,” Cornyn’s campaign said at the time, “Ken Paxton lied to banks to amass a property empire making him a multimillionaire while on a government salary.”
Cornyn lost in a Republican primary runoff in May after a late Trump endorsement. He was first elected to the Senate in 2002.
Paxton claimed in the Fox News interview on Sunday that the allegations that he did anything untoward on his mortgage paperwork were a “conjob” by Talarico, citing archaic provisions in the Texas Constitution that have since been undone.
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Talarico is “bringing up this crazy stuff about somehow I’ve done something wrong by… following the Texas Constitution and by following Texas law,” Paxton said.
On Monday, Paxton criticized Talarico for telling billionaire Mark Cuban at a campaign event that “if you are okay with getting taxed more, if you’re okay with me limiting your influence in politics, you are welcome in this movement.” Talarico’s campaign described the statement as the Democrat “wanting to make billionaires pay their fair share in taxes.”
“Right now, Texans are doing everything they can to pay the bills and put food on the table,” Paxton wrote on X. “James Talarico has now clearly told everyone that if you want to be taxed more, he’s your guy.”
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