Twenty abortion providers sue Texas officials over law that bans abortions as early as six weeks
The law is set to take effect Sept. 1. Full Story
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Credit: Evan L'Roy/The Texas Tribune -
Analysis: Texas legislators are fighting ferociously — and for voters' attention
Texas lawmakers are battling over voting laws — pushing people into late hearings and walking out on the proceedings in Austin — and hoping their voters will appreciate the ferocity. Full Story
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![U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett, D-Texas, joined other Democratic members of the Texas House of Representatives, who are boycotting a special session of the legislature in an effort to block Republican-backed voting restrictions, as they speak in front of the U.S. Capitol in Washington D.C., on July 13, 2021.]()
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Officials in charge of Texas' power grid try to reassure lawmakers and the public that they're fixing lingering problems
Lawmakers cannot pass laws to improve Texas’ power grid during the special legislative session. They’re discussing it anyway. Full Story
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![Reliability Coordinators monitored the state power grid during a tour of the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) command center in Taylor in 2012.]()
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Texas House Republicans vote to track down absent Democrats and arrest them if necessary
The procedural move carries little apparent weight since the Democrats who fled the state to break quorum are beyond the jurisdiction of Texas law enforcement. Full Story
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![House Republicans crowd around the speakers desk to discuss a point of order attempting to strip absent members of their committee appointments on the House floor on Tuesday, July 13, 2021.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune -
To block voting legislation, Democrats put bail bills, legislative funding and other measures in peril
Conservative priorities to restrict pretrial release from jail and ban critical race theory in schools were up in the air after Democratic lawmakers chartered flights to Washington, D.C. But so was funding for retired teachers and legislative employees. Full Story
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![Speaker of the House Dade Phelan gavels in the opening day of the special session at the Texas Capitol on July 8, 2021.]()
Credit: Sophie Park/The Texas Tribune -
Civil rights attorney Lee Merritt, a Democrat, launches campaign against Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton
Merritt officially began his Democratic campaign Tuesday with an emphasis on the voting rights battle that caused state House Democrats to leave Texas a day earlier. Full Story
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![Lee Merritt, attorney for the Merritt Law Firm in Philadelphia, testifies during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing to examine issues involving race and policing practices in the aftermath of the death of George Floyd, in Washington D.C., June 16, 2020.]()
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Texas Democrats land in Washington, D.C., and promise to stay out of Texas until after special legislative session ends Aug. 6
Texas Democrats said they are urging Congress again to pass federal voting laws, acknowledging that Gov. Greg Abbott would continue to call special sessions until the GOP elections bill was passed. Full Story
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![State Rep. Senfronia Thompson, D-Houston, speaks to the press after Democratic members of the Texas House of Representatives, who are boycotting a special session of the legislature to block Republican-backed voting restrictions, arrive at Dulles airport in Sterling, Virginia, on July 12, 2021.]()
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After hours of impassioned testimony, Texas Senate panel advances bills limiting the school sports teams that transgender athletes can join
Gov. Greg Abbott added the legislation to the special session agenda after similar bills failed to pass during the regular session earlier this year. Full Story
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![A high school volleyball player gets ready to serve during a game.]()
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Texas House Democrats flee the state in move that could block voting restrictions bill, bring Legislature to a halt
A majority of Democrats in the Texas House left for Washington, D.C., Monday afternoon in a bid to again deny Republicans the quorum needed to pass new voting restrictions with 26 days left in a special legislative session called largely for that purpose. Full Story
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![Members of the House Democratic Caucus attend a press conference on the opening day of the special session at the Texas Capitol on July 8, 2021.]()
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Deploy law enforcement? Call another special session? Texas GOP mulls options for elections bill after Democrats leave the state
A number of House Republicans indicated that they would support what’s known as a call of the House, a procedural move that would allow law enforcement to track down lawmakers who have already fled the chamber. Full Story
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![Planes stationed at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport on July 12, 2021.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune -
Eva Guzman raises $1 million in first 10 days of attorney general campaign, with some major donor support
The former state Supreme Court justice is one of two Republican primary challengers to Attorney General Ken Paxton, the other being Land Commissioner George P. Bush. Full Story
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![Texas Supreme Court Justice Eva Guzman at the Texas Republican Convention at the Henry B. Gonzales Convention Center in San Antonio on June 14, 2018.]()
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Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton agrees to stop blocking people on Twitter, ending lawsuit over First Amendment
Attorneys in the lawsuit, which was filed in April, argued that being blocked from viewing Paxton’s tweets limited the rights of people to access statements made by the public official, therefore violating the First Amendment. Full Story
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![Attorney General Ken Paxton speaks to the Gun Owners of America assembly in 2018.]()
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Analysis: There’s plenty still to play out ahead of 2022, but Greg Abbott is starting to run up the score
With a big endorsement and a record-setting fundraising period behind him, Texas' governor is in a political sweet spot. Full Story
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![Gov. Greg Abbott spoke to the Senate at the Capitol on the first day of the 2021 Legislature on Jan. 12, 2021.]()
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Former state Rep. Matt Rinaldi wins Texas GOP chair election
The State Republican Executive Committee met Sunday to pick a successor for Allen West, the chairman who resigned last month after a drama-filled tenure and is now running for governor. Full Story
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![Former state representative Matt Rinaldi spoke to demonstrators at the Governor’s Mansion in protest of Gov. Abbott’s executive orders to close businesses and mandate masks during the COVID-19 pandemic.]()
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GOP voting bills advance in Texas House and Senate after overnight committee hearings
Authors of the legislation are moving to ban drive-thru and 24-hour voting options, enhance access for partisan poll watchers and prohibit local election officials from proactively distributing applications to request mail-in ballots. Both bills also include language to further restrict the state’s voting-by-mail rules, including new ID requirements for absentee voters. Full Story
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![Activists hold signs saying, "Texas Deserves Better" outside a Senate committee hearing on proposed election reforms, at the Capitol on Saturday, July 10, 2021.]()
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Texans testifying on GOP voting bill faced a 17 hour-wait to be heard by lawmakers in the dead of night
Members of the public arrived at the Texas Capitol as early as 6 a.m. to sign up to speak before lawmakers considering the legislation. In the House, public testimony wouldn't begin until early the next morning. Full Story
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![Hundreds of people wait outside an Auditorium in the Capitol extension to provide testimony at a Senate committee hearing regarding proposed election legislation on Saturday, July 10, 2021.]()
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A Texas man was arrested on charges that he voted in the 2020 Democratic primary while on parole. He could face as much as 20 years in prison.
More than a year later, Rogers was arrested on charges that he voted in last year’s Democratic primary while on parole. Under Texas law, it is illegal for a felon to “knowingly” vote while still serving a sentence, including parole. Full Story
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![People wait in line to vote around at 9:45 p.m. on March 3, 2020, at Texas Southern University in Houston.]()
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House and Senate committees advance GOP bail legislation, as Democrats warn bills could lead to mass detentions
Legislators in the House and Senate filed matching bills to change state bail practices earlier this week, echoing legislation that failed to pass in the regular session. On Saturday, committees in both chambers approved the bills. Full Story
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![The House Constitutional Rights and Remedies Committee hearing at the state Capitol on Saturday, July 10, 2021.]()
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Texas educators of color say law limiting how America’s history of racism is taught further silences marginalized voices
Texas teacher Juan Carmona says it’s important to talk about the experiences of marginalized groups with students of color because they should see themselves represented in history books. Full Story
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![A student raises his hand in class at James Bowie High School in Austin.]()
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Texas Senate bill seeks to strip required lessons on people of color and women from “critical race theory” law
The bill would also remove a requirement to teach that white supremacy is "morally wrong." One Democratic lawmaker said the bill’s attempts could lead to a “frightening dystopian future.” Full Story
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![The empty entryway of Judson High School on Aug. 11, 2020, in Converse.]()
Credit: Allie Goulding/The Texas Tribune