James Talarico, the Democratic U.S. Senate nominee, has pushed to suspend the federal gas tax amid soaring fuel costs. Cornyn previously opposed the idea.
Kayla Guo
Kayla Guo covers state politics and government. Before joining the Tribune, she covered Congress for The New York Times as a reporting fellow based in Washington, D.C. Kayla has also covered transportation policy for Politico and local news for The Raleigh News & Observer, and she was a part-time digital producer for The Boston Globe. She graduated from Brown University, where she studied public policy and served as editor-in-chief and president of the independent student newspaper. She was born and raised on Long Island, New York. She is based in Austin.
Posted in
2026 Texas Elections
Texas’ 9th Congressional District GOP runoff: Who is running and what to know
Army veteran Alex Mealer and state Rep. Briscoe Cain are facing off for the Republican nomination in the newly drawn 9th District, anchored in east Harris County.
Posted in
2026 Texas Elections
Talarico leads both Cornyn, Paxton in new polls of Texas’ U.S. Senate race
The Austin Democrat, who won his party’s nomination in March, led Cornyn and Paxton in two successive polls, though he did not crack 50%.
Posted in
2026 Texas Elections
Texas Republican candidate suspended by Kalshi for betting on his own election
Zeke Enriquez, who ran in the GOP primary for Texas’ 21st Congressional District, was fined and barred from the prediction market platform for five years. Two candidates in other states were suspended for the same offense.
Posted in
2026 Texas Elections
James Talarico calls for federal gas tax pause to combat surging fuel prices
A trade group argued that a federal gas tax suspension would be unlikely to show up in savings for drivers and would diminish needed infrastructure revenue.
Posted in
Politics
Speaker Dustin Burrows asks Texas House to investigate Roblox in response to game simulating Uvalde shooting
Burrows added the charge to his list of interim priorities, instructing lawmakers to study ways to strengthen child protections on gaming platforms like Roblox.
Posted in
2026 Texas Elections
Texas Democrats feud over party leadership as hundreds back Kendall Scudder’s chairmanship
Nearly 800 elected officials, party activists and local Democratic leaders signed onto a letter supporting Scudder after three dozen called on him to forgo reelection.
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Politics
Three dozen Texas Democrats urge Kendall Scudder not to seek reelection as state party chair
In an open letter, former staffers and other insiders said the state party has fallen short on strategy and failed to act with urgency under Scudder’s leadership.
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Politics
Texas oil and gas regulator Wayne Christian peddles oil-backed crypto coin
Government watchdogs raised conflict-of-interests concerns, but Christian said his involvement in the venture is “separate” from his elected position on the Railroad Commission.
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Politics
Texas House Democrats who walked out over congressional map fined over $8,000 each
A Republican-led House committee approved the penalties Friday, charging Democrats $500 for each day they were absent, plus costs borne by law enforcement to bring them back.
