Enlarge photo by: Marjorie Kamys Cotera

Gov. Rick Perry with wife Anita at a Williamson County Republican dinner in Round Rock, his first public appearance since leaving the presidential race.

Your evening reading: Republicans challenge group hoping to turn Texas blue; White House to begin immigration push next week; conservative groups come out against school security bill

Enlarge photo by: Tamir Kalifa

Democratic supporters at the Driskill Hotel in Austin erupt in celebration as CNN projects President Obama's re-election victory on Nov. 6, 2012.

A new group may provide Texas Democrats with an answer to their long-ignored prayers for a political comeback.

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Your evening reading: state tax-break bill targets federal contraception rule; national Democrats launch Texas initiative; Texas Republicans rebuke Clinton over Benghazi testimony 

Enlarge photo by: Khampha Bouaphanh

State Sen. Wendy Davis, D-Fort Worth, faces Mark Shelton in a District 10 Senate debate at the Tarrant County College Trinity River Campus in Fort Worth on Oct. 11, 2012.

The 2013 legislative session may have just begun, but for half of the state Senate, the 2014 election season started Wednesday.

Enlarge photo by: Bob Daemmrich

Sen. Leticia Van de Putte, D-San Antonio, is shown her lottery number by Senate Secretary Patsy Spaw on Jan. 23, 2013.

Your evening reading: senators draw re-election terms; five Texas Republicans vote against debt ceiling extension; major Democratic donor spending big in Houston special election

Enlarge photo by: Santiago Arce

Tuesday's shooting on a college campus in Houston has inflamed the already heated debate over gun rights in Texas.

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Your evening reading: 3 injured in shooting at Houston community college; lawmakers sound off on Roe v. Wade anniversary; Legislature weighing fees on electric cars

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For this week's nonscientific survey of insiders in politics and government, we asked about state ethics laws — about lawmakers' disclosure of personal finances, of client lists, and about what laws the insiders would change if they could.

Enlarge photo by: Phil Roeder

Texas Republicans in Washington largely put partisanship aside on Monday as President Obama marked the beginning of his second term with a vigorous defense of liberalism.

Enlarge photo by: Tom Harris

Your evening reading: Texas lawmakers set politics aside for inauguration; Cornyn calls Obama's speech "aspirational"; Mexico drawn into gun control debate

Enlarge photo by: Bob Daemmrich

President Obama working the rope line after his Austin Music Hall speech on July 17, 2012.

Texas Democrats rode a fresh wave of optimism over the weekend as inauguration festivities descended on Washington.