Ken Paxton Declares Support For Donald Trump for President

CLEVELAND — Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said Wednesday he supports Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump and that is is "not a close call" between the billionaire and his Democratic rival, Hillary Clinton. 

"I plan to support him, vote for him, tell everybody to vote for him," Paxton told reporters here at the Republican National Convention. "The issues — whether it relates to the economy, whether it relates to national security, whether it relates to the Supreme Court — we know where Hillary Clinton is going to go with this, and so I'm telling my friends, 'Vote for Donald Trump.'"

Paxton had been among the few statewide officials whose position on Trump was not known heading into the national convention. He previously supported U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas in the GOP race for the White House.

"I'm a huge fan of Ted Cruz, but he's not the nominee, and so we have two choices right now," Paxton told reporters Wednesday. "We have Hillary Clinton and we have Donald Trump, and there's a clear distinction between them on every issue." 

Paxton's remarks on Trump came after an address to the Texas delegation. In the speech, he largely steered clear of presidential politics, instead focusing on cases in which the state is currently involved.