Editor’s Note: A previous version of this article incorrectly stated the name of Rep. Giovanni Capriglione’s attorney.
A month after unveiling his reelection campaign, Texas House Republican and state DOGE Committee Chairman Giovanni Capriglione shocked the Texas capitol Tuesday by announcing he no longer plans to run.
The about-face came just before a bombshell interview surfaced Friday with an exotic dancer who maintains she had a 17-year affair with the conservative Dallas-Fort Worth-area lawmaker, who she also alleges paid for her abortions and made disturbing sexual comments about children.
Far-right media outlet Current Revolt published the 25-minute interview with a woman named Alex Grace, a self-described former exotic dancer and a mother of four, who said she began seeing Capriglione in 2004. Grace told the outlet she shared her story out of a sense of duty and ethical concerns over the the lawmaker’s powerful political position.
Shortly after the story broke, Capriglione released a statement confirming the affair but disputing the rest of Grace’s story, as reported by Texas Tribune reporter Renzo Downey.
“Years ago, I selfishly had an affair. I’m not proud of this,” Capriglione said. “Thank God my wife and family forgave me, and we moved past it and have the strong marriage we do today.”
In the sit-down interview with Current Revolt, Grace maintains Capriglione paid for multiple abortions during the course of their affair, despite his publicly held anti-abortion stance. Indeed, the Republican lawmaker authored the 2021 trigger ban law that automatically outlawed abortion in Texas when the U.S. Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade.
Grace declined to offer more details on the alleged abortions, telling Current Revolt the publication would “have to go with my word.”
Capriglione, who frequently touts his mission to uphold “family values,” disputes the claims he paid for Grace to have the procedure he was responsible for outlawing in Texas.
“I have never, nor would I ever, pay for an abortion,” he said in his statement.
Grace also told Current Revolt that Capriglione paid her when they met up for sexual encounters. The Republican, who is known for presenting tech-focused legislation in the Texas House and serves as chair of the Innovation and Technology Caucus, also used a burner phone and email to communicate covertly, she told the publication.
Grace also alleges that Capriglione would make annual trips to Amsterdam’s Red Light District, with his wife’s knowledge.
In one of the interview’s most explosive claims, Grace described becoming uncomfortable when Capriglione mentioned wanting to ejaculate into batter for cookies that would be sold at his daughter’s bake sale. In the video interview, Grace stated that Capriglione said he enjoyed the thought of children — particularly young girls — consuming his semen.
Before Current Revolt’s story had even been published, an attorney representing Capriglione threatened Current Revolt with a lawsuit if the outlet moved ahead with its story, which the attorney characterized as “defamatory.”
The week has brought a stark reversal of fortune for Capriglione, who just two weeks ago bragged online that he’d won President Donald Trump’s endorsement as he looked ahead to his reelection campaign.
In addition to seven terms representing Texas House District 98 on the north end of the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, Capriglione is also the chair of the Texas DOGE committee, which Republican lawmakers formed earlier this year inspired by billionaire Elon Musk’s task force purportedly created to root out waste, fraud and abuse at the federal level.
As online rumors began to swirl this week after Capriglione withdrew his reelection bid, he blocked his tweets from being viewed by anyone but approved followers. However, Current Revolt captured screenshots before the lawmaker cut off access.
Even so, Capriglione’s Tuesday statement announcing that he’s no longer seeking reelection is still available on his Facebook page, where he said he intends to serve out the remainder of his seventh term.
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This article appears in Jul 23 – Aug 6, 2025.