Attorney General Ken Paxton cannot shut down Texas Latino voting group, judge rules
Source: AP
Updated 3:24 PM EST, January 30, 2026
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton failed to offer “any plausible proof” that Jolt Initiative, a nonprofit that aims to increase civic participation among Latinos, is violating the law, a federal judge ruled Thursday.
Paxton had filed a lawsuit in state court accusing Jolt of submitting “unlawful voter registration applications,” specifying in a press release that the group was “attempting to register illegals, who are all criminals.” The suit, which seeks to revoke Jolt’s nonprofit charter through a legal mechanism known as a quo warranto petition, was put on ice by U.S. District Judge Robert Pitman, who said in his ruling that Paxton appears to be operating in bad faith.
The attorney general’s case against Jolt “supposes absolutely no wrongdoing,” and indicates that the attorney general may be “harassing (Jolt) and fishing for reasons to investigate its organization.”
This is not the first legal back-and-forth between Jolt and Paxton’s office. Last year, the organization successfully sued to stop the state’s investigation into their voter registration efforts. In the new suit, Jolt’s lawyers argue Paxton’s efforts to shut them down are retaliation. The attorney general’s office has also in recent years targeted other organizations aiding Latinos and migrants, such as the effort to investigate and shut down El Paso-based Annunciation House.
Read more: https://apnews.com/article/ken-paxton-robert-pitman-lawsuits-general-news-texas-cca420037922b2a8ad7b2ad6315c50e7
Link to Jolt Initiative PRESS RELEASE - Federal Court Halts Texas Attorney General’s Attempt to Shut Down Latino Voter Registration Organization
Link to ORDER (PDF viewer) - https://drive.google.com/file/d/1PL-Eoie6-lSe5p1vYjz2eW1-7CsAR7Jy/view
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and the judge sided with the group! 