Texas votes: Abortion, border security and marijuana energize voters on Election Day
Texas voters cast their ballots Tuesday with a wide variety of issues on their minds, including the state’s grid and the Uvalde shooting. Full Story
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Pooja Salhotra joined the Tribune in 2022 as its first-ever East Texas reporter based in Lufkin, where she covered a vast region that borders three states and stretches north to Texarkana and south to Beaumont. In late 2023, she relocated to Austin as a general assignment reporter to cover issues ranging from breaking news to developments in state agencies. Pooja was born and raised in the Houston area and graduated from Yale University. She also holds a master’s in fine arts from NYU’s journalism school.
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Credit: Eddie Gaspar/The Texas Tribune -
Rural Texas is the state’s foundation. And it’s in jeopardy.
Downtowns are deserted, hospitals are closing, teachers are leaving. Every part of life in rural Texas is harder — but it’s worth saving. Full Story
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![Vehicles pass through Dublin in Central Texas on March 25, 2021.]()
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“I’m in no rush”: Voter apathy takes hold of early voting ahead of Texas midterm election
Republicans may be waiting to vote on Election Day after former President Donald Trump pushed voting in person on Nov. 8 at a rally in South Texas. Full Story
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![Students and faculty walk past the Peter T. Flawn Academic Center at The University of Texas while early voting takes place Oct. 25.]()
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A national bus driver shortage is upending Texas’ beloved Friday night high school football games
School leaders are offering more money and paid training for potential bus drivers. Some routes still go unserved. Full Story
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Inside a bus, East Texans get the health care they can’t afford or find anywhere else
Access to health care is limited in rural Texas. The mobile clinic operated by Beaumont-based TAN Healthcare aims to close that gap. Full Story
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![Shelly Huffman meets with a nurse practitioner as patients receive healthcare at a mobile health clinic in Kirbyville, Texas, U.S., on Monday, October 17, 2022.]()
Credit: Callaghan O'Hare for The Texas Tribune -
Gov. Greg Abbott says state should fund distribution of medication that can reverse opioid overdose
While not detailing how the distribution might be funded, Abbott said the medication, Narcan, should be distributed to law enforcement agencies as well as some hospitals and schools. Full Story
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![Gov. Greg Abbott speaks at a press conference with Nuevo León Governor García on April 13, 2022.]()
Credit: Kaylee Greenlee Beal for The Texas Tribune -
East Texas nonprofit hopes small loans and job training will ease the hardships of leaving prison
Formerly incarcerated Texans face numerous barriers to restart their lives. Without help from the state, the Next Chapter program in Lufkin is helping people released from prison get back on their feet. Full Story
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![Maurice Watts in San Augustine on October 4, 2022.]()
Credit: Mark Felix for The Texas Tribune -
Uvalde superintendent retires, becoming latest local official to leave post after school shooting
Hal Harrell said his decision to leave the district after 31 years in education was “not made lightly and was made after much prayer and discernment.” Full Story
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![Uvalde CISD school board members listen as parents of victims of the mass shooting at Robb Elementary speak during a meeting in Uvalde on August 24, 2022.]()
Credit: Kaylee Greenlee Beal for The Texas Tribune -
Beto O’Rourke wants to end the STAAR tests. Here’s why he can’t.
The Texas Democratic gubernatorial candidate has said several times he will end the annual standardized tests. State and federal law make it impossible. Full Story
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![Democratic gubernatorial candidate Beto O'Rourke speaks at a rally in Austin on Sept. 6, 2022.]()
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Conspiracy theorists and 16-hour days: Inside the stress elections officials face ahead of the midterms
Running elections in Texas has never been easy. But since 2020, the scrutiny elections administrators face has grown — even in small Republican-controlled counties that former President Donald Trump carried. Full Story
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![Todd Stallings poses for a portrait at the elections office in Nacogdoches on Oct. 3, 2022.]()
Credit: Mark Felix for The Texas Tribune