Denying quorum has been a Texas political strategy since 1870

Sign up for The Brief, The Texas Tribune’s daily newsletter that keeps readers up to speed on the most essential Texas news.

---

In June 1870, 13 Texas senators walked out of the Capitol to block a bill giving the governor wartime powers, depriving the upper chamber of the two-thirds quorum required for voting. Though the fleeing members were arrested, and the bill eventually passed, the “Rump Senate incident” established quorum-breaking as a minority party tactic that has persisted in Texas politics ever since.

After significant quorum breaks in 1979, 2003, and 2021, Texas House Democrats are once again employing this nuclear option, fleeing the state Sunday to block passage of a congressional redistricting map that would give Republicans five additional seats in the U.S. House. The attempt represents the latest chapter for the maneuver that political scientists say, barring exceptional endurance on the part of the democratic delegation, is likely to be symbolic rather than directly effective in preventing redistricting.

"It's a messaging move," said Brandon Rottinghaus, a political science professor at the University of Houston. "It's a last resort for Democrats who have run out of options legislatively and even legally."

A brief history of Texas quorum breaks

The "Killer Bees" quorum break of 1979 was the last such effort that achieved its immediate aims. Twelve Democratic state senators fled the Capitol for four days to block a measure that, according to the arguments of the quorum breakers at the time, would have shifted the timing of the Texas presidential primary to benefit former Republican Gov. John Connally’s candidacy. The senators held out in a garage apartment in Austin until the bill was withdrawn.

The 2003 quorum break over a mid-decade redistricting effort ended with Democrats returning one by one. House Democrats fled to Ardmore, Oklahoma and remained there until the regular session of the Legislature ended. However, former Gov. Rick Perry called a special session. Then, 11 Democratic senators left Texas for Albuquerque, New Mexico. They remained there for 46 days until then-Sen. John Whitmire D-Houston returned to Texas, allowing the chamber to reach a quorum and to pass the redistricting legislation.

The 2021 quorum break, called to block restrictive voting measures, collapsed after six weeks when internal divisions fractured Democratic unity. Though Democrats initially maintained solidarity during their stay in Washington, disagreements emerged during the second special session. The effort ended when three Houston Democrats returned, citing the COVID-19 pandemic, ​​​and providing quorum that allowed the controversial legislation to pass.

The reality of a quorum break

While the Democrats technically can prevent the GOP’s redistricting effort by breaking quorum, it would require the entire delegation to stay out of the state until at least November, which political scientists say is unlikely given historical precedent.

"If we're going to follow our current primary schedule, we do need to have these districts approved by the Legislature before the opening of filing [for the 2026 midterms] in November," explained Mark P. Jones, a political science professor at Rice University.

The challenge for Democrats is that Gov. Greg Abbott can call unlimited special sessions lasting up to 30 days each. If Democrats break quorum during the current special session, which runs through late August, Abbott could immediately call another session the next day, and continue doing so indefinitely.

Even if Democrats managed to stay out of state until the November filing deadline, it could be possible for Republicans to simply hold a second round of primaries for the 2026 midterms according to Jon Taylor, a political science professor at the University of Texas at San Antonio.

"Back in 1996, a couple of congressional districts in Texas were redrawn in violation of the Voting Rights Act. They actually had to hold a second round of primaries," Taylor noted.

History suggests that the difficulty of living out of state away from legislators' families and day jobs makes it difficult for an entire delegation to break quorum for longer than two special sessions.

"Many of them have children, families that they'll be not seeing, at least not in state, missing things from football games to confirmations," Jones said. "The precedent is that it's not that hard to do for one special session. It’s possible albeit a reach for a second. Going toward a third would be unprecedented."

There is also the physical difficulty of housing so many people out of state. The 2003 quorum break, prompted by another redistricting fight, “was a pretty bare bones operation. They had to kind of set up a war room in Oklahoma under very adverse circumstances. It was not a luxury,” said Rottinghaus.

Only 12 of the 62 House Democrats who have reportedly left the state need to return to restore a quorum, allowing votes to proceed.

Democrats can generate national media attention, but that coverage fades quickly.

"The novelty and the nationwide media coverage will start to dissipate in a matter of a week or two," Jones said. "It's tough to keep a story on the front burner for more than a week or so, especially when there's really nothing new about it."

What penalties do Democrats face?

House rules adopted in 2023 impose a $500-per-day fine on lawmakers who leave the state, and indicate that campaign funds cannot be used to pay the penalties. But Texas ethics laws provide ample workarounds.

"Under Texas ethics laws, it's quite easy for some group to effectively just simply pay these legislators money as a form of compensation that then they can use to pay these fines," Jones said. "Let's say Mark Cuban wants to pay all these House Democrats $1,000 a day as consultants — they can do that."

Last week, The Texas Tribune reported that Democrats had begun fundraising for a potential quorum break. During the 2021 quorum break, a Beto O’Rourke-backed group gave $600,000 to Texas House Democrats’ for their stay in Washington, D.C.

The legislators are also likely to challenge the fines in court, potentially delaying the financial consequences of the break

"Several mentioned that [the fines] are essentially a violation of their civil liberties," Jones said, noting that former House member and current Rep. Jasmine Crockett has been among those discussing legal challenges.

Can Republicans compel Dems to return?

Attorney General Ken Paxton has promised his office will assist in "hunting down and compelling the attendance" of any Democrat who flees the state, however, political scientists say that there is no direct way for Republicans to compel the return of legislators who have left the state.

"If the House members are outside of the state of Texas, there is really nothing they can do," said Jones.

If Democrats were still in Texas, Republicans could deploy the Department of Public Safety to track them down and physically compel their attendance. In 2003, during a redistricting battle, state troopers and even federal resources were used to search for missing legislators.

"They employed some federal resources to track planes that were flying out that they suspected had members on them," Rottinghaus said of the 2003 episode.

The challenge of tracking down missing legislators was vividly illustrated during the 1979 "Killer Bees" episode, when a dozen Democratic state senators hid out in Austin to block changes to the primary election date. Then-Lt. Gov. William P. Hobby Jr. sent Texas Rangers and state troopers to hunt them down, leading to a weekslong game of hide-and-seek.

"They got caught eventually because of an enterprising reporter who was looking at a tip or rumor, and managed to confront one of the state senators taking out the trash," Taylor said.

But Republicans' most potent weapons may be political rather than legal. They can pressure Democrats by arguing other important legislation, including emergency aid for recent Hill Country flooding and regulations on consumable hemp, is being held hostage by the walkout.

"State Republicans may make a case that the future of the STAAR test or THC regulation or some funding for some of the disasters that have taken place recently are all in jeopardy because Democrats have bailed." Rottinghaus said.

Republicans could also take novel, aggressive measures, like trimming the $20,000 monthly operating budgets given to House members to run their offices’ operations or declaring the seats vacant and triggering special elections, Rottinghaus said. The last option has never been used, even during the most contentious previous quorum breaks.

For some legislators, that most drastic option is already on the table. In a July 30 letter sent to the Republican Caucus, Rep. Brent Money, R-Greenville wrote “Should members flee the state for an extended period, the Governor has the constitutional authority to declare their seats vacant.”

---

The lineup for The Texas Tribune Festival continues to grow! Be there when all-star leaders, innovators and newsmakers take the stage in downtown Austin, Nov. 13–15. The newest additions include comedian, actor and writer John Mulaney; Dallas mayor Eric Johnson; U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minnesota; New York Media Editor-at-Large Kara Swisher; and U.S. Rep. Veronica Escobar, D-El Paso. Get your tickets today!

TribFest 2025 is presented by JPMorganChase.