Texas Rep. John Lujan files to run in redrawn 35th Congressional District
Lujan, a Republican, represents a state House district that covers southern and eastern portions of San Antonio, overlapping with the new congressional seat. Full Story
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![State Rep. John Lujan, R-San Antonio, at the state Capitol in Austin on Jan. 11, 2023.]()
Credit: Evan L'Roy/The Texas Tribune -
House Democrats’ frustration with STAAR bill highlights divide over how new test should look
Democrats say recent changes to the bill give too much power to the TEA and fall short of meaningfully easing the pressures of standardized testing. Full Story
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![Austin Voices for Education and Youth hosts a summer camp at the Dobie Middle School in Austin on July 23, 2025.]()
Credit: Ilana Panich-Linsman for The Texas Tribune -
For their walkout, Texas Democrats get national attention — and partisan retribution at home
Democrats said the walkout inspired a national protest against GOP redistricting. But it also greased the path for other bills they oppose and unified Texas Republicans. Full Story
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![State Rep. Mihaela Plesa, D-Plano, rips up her "permission slip" in front of the Texas House vowing she will stay the night in the House Chamber in support of fellow Democrat Nicole Collier on August 19, 2025. At left is Rep. Rhetta Bowers, D-Garland, at right is Rep. Cassandra Hernandez, D-Farmer's Branch.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for The Texas Tribune -
Former Speaker Dade Phelan won’t seek reelection to Texas House
As speaker, Phelan oversaw passage of numerous conservative priorities, but he gave up the gavel under pressure from the far right over the House’s impeachment of Attorney General Ken Paxton. Full Story
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![State Rep. Dade Phelan, R-Beaumont, speaks with other representatives on the House floor on May 19, 2025.]()
Credit: Lorianne Willett/The Texas Tribune -
Republican Stan Lambert of Abilene won’t seek reelection to Texas House
Lambert overcame a brutal primary last year after drawing the wrath of two of the state’s most powerful GOP leaders. Full Story
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![Texas House District 71 Rep. Stan Lambert gestures during an interview at Monk’s Coffee shop in Abilene Thursday Feb. 8, 2024.]()
Credit: Ronald W. Erdrich for The Texas Tribune -
Gov. Greg Abbott asks for new penalties for lawmakers who flee to halt legislative sessions
The governor announced he was expanding his special session agenda shortly after the Texas House passed a congressional map that Democrats had delayed by leaving the state. Full Story
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![Gov. Greg Abbott speaks at a press conference Friday, Aug. 15, 2025 in Austin, Texas. Abbott spoke about Texas’s response to screwworm as well as addressed California Governor Gavin Newsom's comments and actions regarding redistricting.]()
Credit: Ronaldo Bolaños/The Texas Tribune -
El Paso judge blocks Ken Paxton from taking legal action against Beto O’Rourke’s political group
The order bars Paxton from prosecuting O’Rourke’s nonprofit or otherwise bringing legal action aimed at revoking Powered by People’s charter. Full Story
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![Former U.S. Rep. Beto O'Rourke speaks at a rally from the south steps of the Capitol in Austin on Aug. 16, 2025.]()
Credit: Ronaldo Bolaños for The Texas Tribune -
Texas House approves GOP congressional map after two-week delay from Democrats’ walkout
Republican lawmakers are pursuing the unusual mid-decade redistricting plan amid pressure from President Donald Trump to protect the GOP’s slim majority in the U.S. House. Full Story
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![Democratic State Representatives line up to question State Rep. Todd Hunter, R-Corpus Christi, during the second reading of HB4 in the house chamber in Austin on August 20, 2025.]()
Credit: Kaylee Greenlee for The Texas Tribune -
Nicole Collier, Texas lawmaker who slept at statehouse, files lawsuit challenging police escorts
The Fort Worth Democrat was confined in the Capitol overnight after refusing to be shadowed by state police, a requirement for lawmakers who had left the state over the GOP redistricting plan. Full Story
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![State Rep. Nicole Collier waves to supporters after she chose to remain in the Texas House chamber until Wednesday after Democratic lawmakers who left the state to deny Republicans the opportunity to redraw the state's 38 congressional districts, returned to the Texas State Capitol in Austin, Texas, U.S. August 19, 2025. Collier is staying because she did not want to sign the required permission slip that would allow lawmakers to leave the Capitol under escort by Department of Public Safety agents.]()
Credit: REUTERS/Nuri Vallbona -
Rep. Nicole Collier spends night on Texas House floor after refusing police escort
The Fort Worth Democrat refused to sign a permission slip that allowed quorum-breaking lawmakers to leave the Capitol while being shadowed by a state trooper. Full Story
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![Protesters cheer on state Rep. Nicole Collier, D-Fort Worth, after she chose to remain in the Texas House chamber until Wednesday after Democratic lawmakers who left the state to deny Republicans the opportunity to redraw the state's 38 congressional districts, returned to the Capitol in Austin on Aug. 18, 2025. Collier is staying because she did not want to sign the required permission slip that would allow lawmakers to leave the Capitol under escort by Department of Public Safety agents.]()
Credit: REUTERS/Nuri Vallbona -
Rep. Ray Lopez of San Antonio will not seek reelection to Texas House
The San Antonio Democrat was first elected to the Legislature in 2019. Full Story
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![State Rep. Ray Lopez, D-San Antonio, followed by Rep. John Bryant, D-Dallas, gets off a charter bus from the Austin airport outside the State Archives building on the east side of the Texas Capitol upon their return to Austin following a two-week quorum break, on Monday, Aug. 18, 2025.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for The Texas Tribune -
Texas House Democrats return to Capitol, ending walkout over redistricting plan
After two weeks out of state, Democratic lawmakers returned to Austin, paving the way for Republicans to pass their proposed congressional map. Full Story
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![Texas Democrats, who left the state earlier this month in protest of proposed congressional maps, return to the Capitol on Monday, Aug. 18, 2025.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for The Texas Tribune -
Texas House, Senate panels again advance redrawn congressional map
A second special session that has made approving the map a priority started Friday, shortly after the first one ended. Full Story
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![State Sen. Phil King, R-Weatherford, listens to testimony during a special Senate virtual hearing on Texas redistricting at the Texas Capitol on July 29, 2025.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for The Texas Tribune -
Texas megadonor Alex Fairly will fund legal bid to keep GOP lawmakers on the primary ballot
The Amarillo businessman said he would tap into the $20 million political action committee he launched last year to preserve ballot access for censured Republicans. Full Story
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![Alex Fairly attends a board of directors meeting for the Amarillo Economic Development Corporation on Monday, April 21, 2025, in Amarillo.]()
Credit: Eli Hartman for The Texas Tribune -
Riding political wins, a once-restrained Gov. Greg Abbott is increasingly steamrolling foes
The third-term governor appears determined to win any battle — even if it means scorched-earth primary crusades or trying to boot duly elected legislators from office. Full Story
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![Gov. Greg Abbott responds to a reporter during a press conference at the Hill Country Youth Event Center in Kerrville on Saturday June 5, 2025.]()
Credit: Ronaldo Bolaños/The Texas Tribune -
Illinois court rejects Texas request to enforce arrest warrants against House Democrats
Judge Scott Larson ruled that the Texas speaker and attorney general had “failed to present a legal basis for the court” to take up the issue. Full Story
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![Democratic Texas Rep. Ron Reynolds speaks during a press conference with members of the Texas House Democratic Caucus at IBEW Local 701 in Warrenville, Ill., on Monday, Aug. 4, 2025. More than 30 Democratic Texas lawmakers fled the state the day before to block a quorum and delay a redistricting plan backed by former President Donald Trump. They regrouped in Illinois to prevent the Legislature from advancing a mid-decade congressional map that could shift several seats to Republican control.]()
Credit: Jamie Kelter Davis for The Texas Tribune -
TribCast: Will 13 Democrats be expelled from the Texas House?
In this week’s episode, Matthew and Eleanor ask University of Houston law professor David Froomkin to help them break down the legal cases seeking to remove 13 Democrats from the Texas House. Full Story
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![State Rep. Ramón Romero, D-Fort Worth, speaks at a press conference with members of the Texas House Democratic Caucus at Painters District Council 30 in Aurora, Ill., on Tuesday, Aug. 5, 2025.]()
Credit: Jamie Kelter Davis for The Texas Tribune -
Abbott vows to immediately call Texas lawmakers back to work if special session ends without new maps
The leaders of both chambers said they would adjourn for the session Friday if Democrats do not return, while the governor said he might add more items to his agenda. Full Story
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![House Speaker Dustin Burrows, Gov. Greg Abbott and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick at a bill signing ceremony at the Capitol in Austin on April 23, 2025.]()
Credit: Kaylee Greenlee for The Texas Tribune -
Texas Supreme Court won’t rule for weeks on GOP requests to expel Democrats who left the state
The governor and attorney general have asked the court to find that Democratic lawmakers abandoned their seats when they left Texas to delay a new congressional map. Full Story
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![Supreme Court of Texas justices sit at the bench for a Q & A after hearing oral arguments for two civil cases at the University of Houston Law Center in Houston on Oct. 29, 2024.]()
Credit: Douglas Sweet Jr. for The Texas Tribune -
Judge blocks Beto O’Rourke from financially supporting Texas Democrats who left the state
The order came at the request of Attorney General Ken Paxton, who O’Rourke accused in a separate lawsuit of going on a “fishing expedition, constitutional rights be damned.” Full Story
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![Former U.S. Rep. Beto O’Rourke speaks during a Fight the Trump Takeover rally outside the South Steps of the Capitol on Thursday, July 24, 2025 in Austin, Texas.]()
Credit: Ronaldo Bolaños/The Texas Tribune