Texas will send inspectors to monitor 2024 elections in Harris County
An audit by the Texas Secretary of State’s Office found improved elections procedures, but the office is sending monitors because of past problems. Full Story
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![Harris County Elections Staff members sort ballot bags at the Elections Technology Center in northwest Houston on Tuesday, March 1, 2022.]()
Credit: Annie Mulligan for The Texas Tribune -
Judge rejects Attorney General Ken Paxton’s attempt to shut down Houston immigrant rights group
Paxton’s office claimed the group broke rules prohibiting political activity by nonprofits, but the judge rejected the case outright. Full Story
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![Cesar Espinosa, executive director of FIEL Houston, speaks during a press conference to announce the Drive-Thru Eviction Aid Fair on Jan. 14, 2021, outside of the George Thomas “Mickey” Leland Federal Building in Houston.]()
Credit: Mark Felix for The Texas Tribune -
UT System prohibits its universities from making political or social statements
The new policy says universities should remain neutral on “issues of the day” while allowing students, faculty and staff to express their ideas. Full Story
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![Pro-Palestinian supporters chant as law enforcement begins to remove demonstrators from an encampment set up in support of Palestine on UT campus Monday, April 29, 2024, in Austin.]()
Credit: Julius Shieh for The Texas Tribune -
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. ends campaign, endorses Trump, withdraws from Texas ballot
Two weeks after successfully getting on the Texas ballot, Kennedy dropped his bid for the White House. Full Story
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![Independent Presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. proposes a 'No Spoiler' pledge with President Joe Biden for the upcoming elections at a campaign event in New York City on May 1, 2024. Mr. Kennedy suggested that in a 50 state head-to-head poll of more than 300,000 potential voters, whoever surveyed as weakest would agree to drop out of the 2024 Presidential race.]()
Credit: Anthony Behar/Sipa USA via REUTERS -
Texas, other GOP-led states sue over program to give immigrant spouses of U.S. citizens legal status
The suit targets a new Biden administration policy that allows spouses to remain in the U.S. while they apply for legal status and possibly a path to citizenship. Full Story
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![Attorney General Ken Paxton speaks at a border security briefing at Texas DPS regional headquarters in Weslaco on Jan. 27, 2022.]()
Credit: Michael Gonzalez for The Texas Tribune -
Texas DPS Director Steve McCraw retiring after 15 years as state’s top law enforcement officer
The longtime head of the Department of Public Safety will step down at the end of the year. Full Story
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![Steven C. McCraw, the Director and Colonel of the Texas Department of Public Safety, speaks at a border security bill signing session at the state Capitol in Austin on June 8, 2023.]()
Credit: Joe Timmerman/The Texas Tribune -
Sheila Jackson Lee’s daughter files to finish out her mother’s term
Carter will run against two Republicans for her mother’s seat to hold for a few weeks before the winner of the general election takes over. Full Story
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![Erica Lee Carter, daughter of the late Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee is comforted by Houston City Council Member Tiffany D. Thomas in the Houston City Hall rotunda on Monday, July 29, 2024.]()
Credit: Elizabeth Conley/Houston Chronicle/POOL -
Veronica Escobar’s role with the presidential campaign offers exciting and sometimes uneasy spotlight
The El Paso Democrat has defended the Biden and Harris campaign through its best — and worst — moments Full Story
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![U.S. Rep. Veronica Escobar, D-El Paso, takes the stage on Day 3 of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago, Illinois on Aug. 21, 2024.]()
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Progressive Democrat's ad decrying "chaos" on the border riles up her South Texas supporters
Michelle Vallejo, who is challenging Republican U.S. Rep. Monica De La Cruz, put out a political ad decrying the “chaos” on the border. Full Story
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![Michelle Vallejo speaks at the first general session at the Texas Democratic Convention in El Paso on June 7, 2024.]()
Credit: Justin Hamel for The Texas Tribune -
A North Texas college donated land to a Christian school. State and federal laws prohibit such gifts, experts say
Two years later, the donation highlights a gap in government oversight at a time when state and local officials are increasingly blurring the lines between church and state. Full Story
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![The U.S. flag, the Texas flag and the Christian flag are flown outside of Community Christian School’s new facility in Mineral Wells, Texas. Nearly two years after Weatherford College donated the land to the religious organization, the property sits empty.]()
Credit: Shelby Tauber for ProPublica and The Texas Tribune -
Colin Allred urges voters to back Kamala Harris at Democratic National Convention
Allred has largely run his Senate race keeping his distance from Harris. On Thursday, before a national audience, he said he is proud to support her. Full Story
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![U.S. Rep. Colin Allred, D-Dallas, takes the stage on Day 4 of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center in Chicago on August 22, 2024.]()
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Texas’ busing of migrants hits a speed bump as fewer enter country
The bus trips to Democrat-run cities stopped after June as the number of migrants apprehended across the southwest border plummeted. Full Story
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![A bus with dozens of migrants, including included several family units, leaves a shelter and heads to New York City on Aug. 31, 2022, in El Paso. The city and county of El Paso are sponsoring (to be reimbursed by FEMA) the voluntary trips to relieve pressure on local resources and shelters.]()
Credit: Ivan Pierre Aguirre for The Texas Tribune -
UT San Antonio and UT Health San Antonio will merge into one institution
The UT System hopes to combine the two institutions by 2025, making it the third largest public research university in the state. Full Story
Credit: Chris Stokes for The Texas Tribune -
U.S. indicts Guatemalan man over 2022 deaths of 53 migrants in San Antonio trailer
The indictment of the alleged leader of the human smuggling organization comes a day after Guatemalan authorities arrested him and six others in connection with the tragedy. Full Story
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![A tractor-trailer found near Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio contained the bodies of 46 dead people, along with 16 others who have been taken to hospitals on June 27, 2022, local officials in San Antonio said.]()
Credit: Nick Wagner for The Texas Tribune -
Court agrees to review Crystal Mason’s case after appeal from Tarrant County DA
A Texas appeals court overturned the illegal voting conviction of Crystal Mason earlier this year. Full Story
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![Crystal Mason spoke about being accused of voter fraud and her upcoming court case on Sept. 9 2019 in Fort Worth.]()
Credit: Leslie Boorhem-Stephenson for The Texas Tribune -
The oil industry is booming. This West Texas small business worries it’s been left behind.
Before the pandemic, Ben Bilbrey worked with some of the largest oil companies. Now he’s waiting for the phone to ring. Full Story
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![Benny Ford drives back to Benro Pump and Supply after picking up a downhole pumping unit from a well site Wednesday, Aug. 14, 2024, near Goldsmith.]()
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Harris shrinks Trump’s lead in Texas, Allred within striking distance of Cruz, poll finds
The poll is among the first to measure where things stand in Texas since President Joe Biden dropped his reelection bid last month. Full Story
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![Vice President and Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris, her running mate Minnesota Governor Tim Walz nearby, as she is filmed for a live broadcast into Chicago's Democratic National Convention (DNC), after delegates of each state delegation ended the roll call to once again nominate her as presidential nominee, during her rally in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on August 20, 2024.]()
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College costs weigh heavily on Texas students as they wait on late financial aid offers
Delays in the new FAFSA led students to take out debt, enroll in community college over their top-choice universities or opt out of going to college. Full Story
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![Tina-Rose Chipeta looks out her dorm window on Monday, Aug. 19, 2024, in College Station.]()
Credit: Ishika Samant for The Texas Tribune -
Transgender Texans blocked from changing their sex on their driver’s license
The Texas Department of Public Safety rule change surfaced in an internal email that also asks driver license staff to compile the names of people seeking a gender marker change. Full Story
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![DPS troopers make a traffic stop in southeast Austin on Aug. 7, 2023.]()
Credit: Joe Timmerman/The Texas Tribune -
Rep. Shawn Thierry joins anti-trans policy group after losing Democratic primary
The Houston Democrat lost her seat after backlash for voting with Republicans to ban transition-related care for minors. Full Story
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![State Rep. Shawn Thierry, D-Houston, speaks to a group of her constituents on Feb. 15, 2024 at St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church in Houston.]()
Credit: Mark Felix for The Texas Tribune
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