AUSTIN, Texas — AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is gearing up for a potential U.S. Senate run while no longer shadowed by a federal corruption investigation that hung over his rising profile in the Republican Party.

That durability would be tested against Republican Sen. John Cornyn should Paxton embark on what would likely be one of the country’s most contentious 2026 primary battles.

Paxton, a close ally of President Donald Trump, has hinted at challenging Cornyn for more than a year but has not said when he will make a decision.

In the final weeks of the Biden administration, the Justice Department decided not to pursue its investigation into Paxton over bribery allegations, according to two people familiar with the matter who spoke to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations.

Though the date of the decision was not immediately clear, it was made in the final weeks of the President Joe Biden’s presidency, one of the people said.

The accusations were arguably the most serious of multiple legal troubles Paxton has faced since becoming attorney general in 2015, including felony securities fraud charges that hovered over him for nearly a decade before he agreed to pay nearly $300,000 in restitution fees. The attorney general also faced an investigation by the Texas State Bar for his efforts to overturn the 2020 election results.

Paxton characterized the investigation as a “bogus witch hunt” in a social media post on X responding to the news Thursday. He also tacked on a fresh barb toward Cornyn.

“Care to comment now, John?” Paxton posted.

Paxton declined an interview request through a spokesperson Thursday.

Spokespeople for Cornyn did not immediately respond to phone and email requests seeking comment.

The quiet dismissal underscores Paxton’s political resiliency and ascendency among his party’s hard-right in recent years while also potentially giving his opponents less fodder for political attacks.

“There are no more clouds over him,” said Bill Miller, a longtime Texas lobbyist and friend of Paxton.

Paxton has targeted Cornyn since the senator became one of few prominent Republicans to criticize him. Cornyn, who helped push a bipartisan gun control bill after the 2022 mass shooting at an Uvalde elementary school, also previously came under criticism from conservative activists who have driven the party’s agenda farther to the right.

Cornyn, who also served as Texas attorney general, has served in the Senate since 2002 and is a popular member of the GOP conference. But Cornyn lost to South Dakota Sen. John Thune in a close bid to become Senate majority leader. If Paxton enters the race, it will likely be the senator’s most competitive primary campaign to date.

In 2020, eight of Paxton’s closest aides accused him of using his office to benefit a Texas real estate developer who employed a woman Paxton was having an extramarital affair with. He was impeached and acquitted in the Texas Senate in 2023.

Nate Paul, the real estate developer, pleaded guilty in January to federal charges for lying to banks to receive millions of dollars in loans.

___

Associated Press reporters Alanna Durkin Richer and Eric Tucker contributed to this report from Washington, D.C. Lathan is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.

SEOUL, South Korea — South Korean prosecutors on Sunday indicted the impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol over his imposition of martial law last month, news reports said.

Yonhap news agency reported that the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office indicted Yoon over rebellion in connection with his Dec. 3 decree that plunged the country into massive political turmoil. Other South Korean media outlets have carried similar reports.

Repeated calls to the prosecutors’ office were unanswered.

Yoon was earlier impeached and arrested over the martial law decree. The Constitutional Court is separately deliberating whether to formally dismiss Yoon as president or reinstate him.

Yoon, a conservative, has steadfastly denied any wrongdoing, calling his martial law a legitimate act of governance meant to raise public awareness of the danger of the liberal-controlled National Assembly which obstructed his agenda and impeached top officials. During his announcement of martial law, Yoon called the assembly “a den of criminals” and vowed to eliminate “shameless North Korea followers and anti-state forces.”

WASHINGTON — Secretary of State Antony Blinken will embark on what is expected to be his final overseas trip in office this weekend, traveling to South Korea, Japan and France.

The State Department announced Friday that Blinken would visit Seoul, Tokyo and Paris beginning Sunday. He will return to Washington early Thursday in time to attend funeral services for former President Jimmy Carter, officials said.

In South Korea, which is in the midst of political turmoil following the impeachment of President Yoon Suk Yeol, and Japan, Blinken intends to highlight the expansion of U.S. cooperation with both nations as part of the Biden administration’s Indo-Pacific strategy.

That strategy is primarily intended to blunt Chinese ambitions in the region but also to deter the nuclear threat from North Korea. Political developments in South Korea, however, after Yoon declared martial law and was later impeached, have raised questions about the stability of Washington-Seoul relations.

The U.S. has taken a cautious approach to the uncertainty, insisting that the U.S.-South Korea alliance remains intact and iron-clad. Blinken will speak with South Korean officials about how “to build on our critical cooperation on challenges around the world based on our shared values,” the State Department said in a statement.

In Tokyo, Blinken will “review the tremendous progress the U.S.-Japan alliance has made over the past few years,” the statement said. That includes a major arms sales approval announced on Friday under which the U.S. will deliver some $3.64 billion dollars in medium-range missiles, related equipment and training to Japan.

China has repeatedly complained about the potential sale, saying it will affect stability and security in the region, allegations that both Japan and the U.S. reject.

Blinken will wrap up his trip in Paris in meetings with French officials to discuss developments in the Middle East and European security, particularly in Ukraine.

SEOUL, South Korea — South Korea’s opposition-controlled National Assembly has voted to impeach the country’s acting leader, Han Duck-soo.

The assembly approved the impeachment motion in a 192-0 vote on Friday. Governing party lawmakers boycotted the vote.

Han, the No. 2 official in South Korea, has been the caretaker leader after President Yoon Suk Yeol was impeached by the assembly over his short-lived imposition of martial law earlier this month.

Han’s impeachment further deepens South Korea’s political crisis and damages its international image.