Aaron Reitz is endorsing Texas state Sen. Mayes Middleton (R) in the Texas attorney general runoff, asserting that Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX) does not meet the criteria to serve in that capacity.

Reitz, who worked as Texas’ Deputy Attorney General for Legal Strategy under Ken Paxton, previously stood as a candidate in the race, originally earning himself an endorsement from Paxton. Now, no longer in the race, Reitz is throwing his weight behind Middleton, Breitbart News has exclusively learned.

“In my last public statement, I said that the next Attorney General of Texas must have three qualities,” Reitz said in a statement.

“First, he must be a staunch and loyal ally to President Trump. Second, he must carry forward the fighting legacy of Attorney General Paxton. And third, he must recognize that we are in a real war for the soul of our state and nation,” he explained, concluding that in the current state of the race between Roy and Middleton, “only Mayes meets those criteria—and that is why he has earned my enthusiastic endorsement to be the next Attorney General.”

He pointed out that Middleton, a businessman and state senator, has remained in alignment with President Donald Trump, noting that Trump himself described Middleton as someone who has a conservative voting record “second to none.”

“In contrast, Chip described Trump as ‘wrong, troubling, and impeachable’ in 2021 and was one of his loudest critics during the 2024 Republican primary election for president,” Reitz said, continuing to show the contrast between Middleton and Roy – first in terms of public service and second in terms of acknowledging the war for the “soul of our state and nation.”

Reitz explained his endorsement further:

Second, Mayes’s record in public service shows that he has the mind, heart, and willpower to keep his foot on the gas after Paxton leaves office. In contrast, Chip was the first elected official in America to demand that AG Paxton step down or be removed from office in 2020, and he was the leading national cheerleader pushing for Paxton’s impeachment and conviction in 2023.

Third, Mayes understands we’re in a real war with the radical Left and has led accordingly: kicking biological males out of female athletics and private spaces, stripping poisonous food and drink from welfare benefits, blocking hostile foreign nations from buying Texas land, reinforcing election-integrity laws, and equipping law enforcement with tools to secure the border. In contrast, Chip talks a big game about being in the fight but accomplishes little. Chip is, as President Trump described him, “just another ambitious guy,” “not done a great job,” “getting in the way, as usual,” and motivated by an obsessive desire for “cheap publicity for himself.”

Reitz earned over a quarter million votes in his run in the race and ultimately urged all of his voters and former donors to support Middleton over Roy.

Texas AG Ken Paxton is running for the United States Senate, challenging incumbent Republican Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX).

The runoff election is May 26, 2026.