Texas Judge Blocks Fundraising by Beto O’Rourke’s Nonprofit in Legal Clash Over Support for Democratic Lawmakers

A Texas district judge has issued a significant legal blow to former Congressman Beto O’Rourke and his nonprofit organization, temporarily halting their ability to raise and distribute funds connected to a controversial political standoff.

On Friday evening, Tarrant County Judge Megan Fahey approved a temporary restraining order against O’Rourke and his organization, Powered by People, in response to allegations brought forward by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. The case centers on claims that O’Rourke’s group unlawfully raised money to support Democratic lawmakers who fled the state in protest of Republican-backed redistricting legislation.

In her ruling, Judge Fahey stated that the fundraising activity violated Texas law, pointing to evidence that political donations were being used to fund personal expenses such as air travel, accommodation, and daily penalties incurred by the lawmakers who left the state to block legislative action.

“Defendants have and will continue to engage in unlawful fundraising practices and utilization of political funds in a manner that either directly violates or causes Texas Democratic legislators to violate the law,” Fahey wrote. “Consumers have and continue to suffer irreparable harm through these unlawful acts because they are making political contributions that are being used to fund personal expenses and violate state law.”

The court order prevents O’Rourke and Powered by People from continuing their fundraising campaigns or providing material support to the lawmakers involved in the walkout. The decision came swiftly—just hours after Paxton’s office filed the emergency motion seeking judicial intervention.

Judge Fahey, a Republican appointee, was named to the bench by Governor Greg Abbott in 2019 and has overseen several high-profile political cases during her tenure.

Reacting to the ruling, O’Rourke issued a strongly worded statement criticizing Paxton and framing the lawsuit as a politically motivated attack.

“Ken Paxton is trying to silence our movement because our volunteers are working to protect democracy, voting rights, and fair elections,” O’Rourke said. “This is the kind of grassroots work that threatens the grip that Paxton, Abbott, and their allies want to keep on power in Texas.”

He went on to suggest that the restraining order was designed to send a warning to others who might oppose Texas GOP leadership. “They want to make an example out of us to stop others from joining this fight. But I’m not backing down. I still plan to speak at our rally to defend democracy tomorrow in Fort Worth.”

Paxton, however, celebrated the ruling as a legal and political win. In a brief but pointed response, the attorney general took aim at O’Rourke and his legal team.

“Cry more, lib,” Paxton said. “You lost in court because you’re breaking the law and deceiving Texans. We absolutely will make an example out of lawbreakers.”

The legal fight appears far from over. In a countermove, O’Rourke filed his own lawsuit in El Paso on the same day, accusing Paxton of conducting a politically driven “fishing expedition” and demanding that a judge block further investigation into his nonprofit’s financial practices.

In addition to the restraining order against Powered by People, Paxton has expanded his scrutiny to include another political group, Texas Majority PAC. That organization has also been accused of providing significant financial backing to the same group of Democratic lawmakers who exited the state during the redistricting debate.

Paxton’s office maintains that these efforts were part of a coordinated campaign to derail legislative progress through improper financial incentives—what some within the attorney general’s circle have referred to as “Beto Bribes.”

On social media, Paxton continued his public victory lap. “BREAKING: I just defeated Beto O’Rourke in court. We secured a major victory stopping runaway Democrats from taking ‘Beto Bribes’ and preventing deceptive fundraising. They told me to ‘come and take it,’ so I did,” he wrote.

The original walkout by Democratic lawmakers took place as a protest against redistricting plans that critics said would unfairly favor Republican districts. In response, Republicans accused their opponents of abandoning their duties and obstructing the democratic process.

Now, the legal battle between one of Texas’s most prominent Democrats and the state’s top law enforcement officer is poised to intensify, with future court hearings likely to shape the boundaries of political fundraising and protest in the Lone Star State.

As the legal fight unfolds, both sides remain defiant—one claiming a defense of democratic values, the other vowing to uphold the rule of law.