Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed an appeal of a Massachusetts federal district court order that blocked enforcement of a Texas lawsuit against ActBlue, a political fundraising platform.
Payxton sued ActBlue in Texas state court in April 2026 under the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act, alleging that ActBlue misrepresented the services and safeguards it provided. According to Paxton's office, the state's investigation found that ActBlue continued to process certain gift card donations despite representations that it had strengthened its safeguards and no longer accepted such donations.
ActBlue subsequently sued Paxton in federal court in Massachusetts and sought to block the Texas enforcement action. On June 11, 2026, the Massachusetts district court issued a preliminary injunction preventing Paxton and his office from continuing to litigate the Texas case or bringing another enforcement action based on the same conduct.
Payxton argued in his appeal that the Massachusetts federal court improperly interfered with ongoing state court proceedings and lacked jurisdiction over the Texas office. He is asking the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit to reverse the injunction and direct the district court to dismiss ActBlue's federal lawsuit.