AG-Elect Paxton Names Roy as First Assistant

Chip Roy, a longtime GOP adviser who most recently worked for U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, will serve as first assistant to Attorney General-elect Ken Paxton, his campaign announced Tuesday.

"We are building a highly qualified and dedicated team that will be ready to defend Texas and ensure we are protected from an overreaching federal government," Paxton said in a statement. Multiple sources told The Texas Tribune last week that Roy was the front-runner for the post.

As first assistant attorney general, Roy will act as the agency’s chief operating officer, managing lawyers and other employees in the agency’s daily affairs. The current first assistant, Daniel Hodge, is expected to follow Attorney General Greg Abbott to the governor’s office, though no official announcements have been made regarding Abbott’s staff. Hodge is currently overseeing Abbott's transition.

Roy was most recently a senior adviser to Cruz, and had been Cruz’s chief of staff before that. He was the ghost writer behind Gov. Rick Perry's book Fed Up! Our Fight to Save America from Washington.

Paxton also launched a transition website Tuesday and announced the rest of his advisory team. They include:

• Roger Alford – Law professor and associate dean, University of Notre Dame
• Ernest Angelo, Jr. – Former chairman, Texas Public Safety Commission; businessman; former mayor
• Jordan Berry – Campaign strategist
• Kevin Brannon – Chief campaign strategist
• Mano DeAyala – Partner, Buck Keenan, LLC
• Susanna Dokupil – Senior fellow at TPPF; former assistant solicitor general of Texas
• Anthony Holm – Counsel and senior communications adviser
• Dee Kelly – Founding partner, Kelly, Hart and Hallman
• Leonard Leo – Executive vice president, Federalist Society
• Matt Orwig – Partner, Jones Day; former United States attorney
• Paul Pressler – Retired judge, 14th Texas Court of Appeals; former state representative
• Steve Roddy – Paxton's chief of staff
• John Ratcliffe – U.S. Congressman-Elect; former United States attorney
• Oliver “Buck” Revell – Revell Group International; former associate deputy director of the FBI; former chairman, Greater Dallas Crime Commission
• Kelly Shackelford – President and CEO, Liberty Institute
• Julie Springer — Partner, Weibart, Springer, Hayes
• Kent Sullivan – Partner, Sutherland Asbill & Brennan; former 1st assistant attorney general
• Andy Taylor – Partner, Andy Taylor & Associates; former 1st assistant attorney general
• David Whitehurst – Partner, Whitehurst Cawley.