TEXAS — Embattled Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has more competition for his job. Five-term state Rep. Matt Krause, R-Fort Worth, on Thursday announced he has thrown his hat in the ring for the state’s top law enforcement official.

Paxton is already facing Republican primary challenges from Texas Land Commissioner George P. Bush and former Texas Supreme Court Justice Eva Guzman.

“After much consideration, prayer, and with the support of my family, I have decided to run for Attorney General,” Krause wrote. “I will be a faithful conservative fighter for Texas values, the citizens of Texas, and the Constitution.”

Krause, 41, was elected to the Texas House in 2012 and is regarded as one of the more conservative members of the Texas Legislature. In announcing his candidacy, he mentioned many of the conservative issues Paxton focuses on. 

“It is important now more than ever that we have an Attorney General that will fight to protect Texas. As a founding member of the Texas Freedom Caucus, I have been on the front lines against the left’s radical agenda from creeping into Texas,” he wrote. “As your Attorney General, I will continue to fight to keep critical race theory out of our schools, protect Texas families from the crisis at our southern border, and stand proudly with our men and women in law enforcement.”

Despite receiving the endorsement of former President Donald Trump, Paxton is dogged by ongoing legal issues.

The FBI opened a criminal investigation into claims that he abused his office to benefit a wealthy donor, the Associated Press reported. 

In 2015, he pleaded not guilty to three felony counts involving accusations of securities fraud.

On the Democratic side of the race there are at least two candidates: Joe Jaworski, a Galveston lawyer and former mayor of the city, and Lee Merritt, a nationally known civil rights attorney.