Matthew McConaughey says he won’t run for Texas governor
The actor said in a video Sunday that “political leadership” is a “path that I’m choosing not to take at this moment.” Full Story
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![Matthew McConaughey spoke at the March For Our Lives rally in Austin in 2018.]()
Credit: Shelby Knowles for The Texas Tribune -
Beto O'Rourke raises $2 million in first 24 hours of launching gubernatorial campaign
O'Rourke faces an even more formidable fundraiser in Republican Gov. Greg Abbott. He had $55 million cash on hand at the end of June. Full Story
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![Texas gubernatorial candidate Beto O'Rourke speaks at a campaign rally in San Antonio on November 16, 2021.]()
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Beto O’Rourke uses opening days of challenge against Gov. Greg Abbott to recalibrate
O’Rourke hit the campaign trail with a pitch narrowly focused on several issues that are largely popular with voters, leaving behind the more incendiary rhetoric from his presidential campaign. Full Story
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![Democratic gubernatorial candidate Beto O'Rourke speaks to supporters at a meet and greet held in San Antonio on Nov. 16, 2021.]()
Credit: Chris Stokes for The Texas Tribune -
Texas universities with federal contracts are caught between Greg Abbott and Joe Biden over COVID-19 vaccine mandates
While some universities in other states that hold federal contracts have mandated vaccines for all employees, many Texas universities, which collectively have billions in federal contracts, are still reviewing the executive order before it goes into effect Dec. 8. Full Story
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![Social distancing markers at the LBJ Student Center at Texas State University in San Marcos on August 24, 2020.]()
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“Extremely influential” or “delusional ideas of grandeur”? GOP primary foe Don Huffines sees impact as Gov. Greg Abbott pushes rightward
Huffines has been the most vocal fellow Republican taking on Abbott, pressuring him over his COVID-19 response, the border and other hot-button issues. Full Story
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![Former state Sen. Don Huffines speaks at a Texas Republican Party rally on the east side of the Capitol Grounds on Jan. 9, 2021.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune -
After staff members died from COVID-19, Waco ISD vows to keep mask mandate in defiance of Gov. Greg Abbott’s order
A judge has yet to decide in the state's lawsuit against the district for defying the governor's executive order. Full Story
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![Students in Mrs. Hogan's kindergarten class on the first day of in-person classes at Highland Village Elementary. Sept. 8, 2020 in Highland Village.]()
Credit: Shelby Tauber for The Texas Tribune -
Texas board recommends George Floyd receive a posthumous pardon for 2004 Houston drug arrest
Gov. Greg Abbott must either approve or reject the parole board’s decision. The 2004 case involved a Houston officer later found to have lied to obtain a search warrant in a 2019 case. Full Story
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![People gather at the mural for George Floyd in the Third Ward in Houston on June 8, 2020.]()
Credit: Annie Mulligan for The Texas Tribune -
Justice Department argues Texas ban on school mask mandates violates disabled students’ rights
Plaintiffs say the governor’s order denies children with disabilities, who are at a high risk of illness and death from the coronavirus, access to public education. Full Story
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![Kindergarten students work at their desks at Blanco Vista Elementary School in San Marcos on Aug. 23, 2021.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for the Texas Tribune -
Donald Trump adds fresh pressure to Gov. Greg Abbott over demand for a forensic election audit
There has been no evidence of widespread election fraud in Texas, where Trump defeated President Joe Biden by 6 percentage points. After the November election, a secretary of state official said Texas’ election was “smooth and secure." Full Story
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![Gov. Greg Abbott, left, addresses former President Donald Trump during a border security briefing to discuss further plans in securing the southern border wall on June 30, 2021, in Weslaco.]()
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Beto O’Rourke on Matthew McConaughey: “I don’t know how he feels about any of the issues”
In a Texas Tribune Festival interview, the former member of Congress discussed the fight for voting rights, his takeaways from his last two runs for office and speculation about his becoming a candidate for governor. Full Story
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![Beto O'Rourke.]()
Credit: Montinique Monroe for The Texas Tribune -
Gov. Greg Abbott announces special legislative session starting Saturday, covering elections, federal COVID-19 funding, quorum rules
The governor said Thursday the second special session will get underway at noon Saturday, with a 17-item agenda. Full Story
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![Gov. Greg Abbott holds a border security briefing with sheriffs from border communities at the Texas Capitol on July 10, 2021.]()
Credit: Sophie Park/The Texas Tribune -
Gov. Greg Abbott says he’ll soon unveil plan to restrict transition-related medical care for transgender children
The move comes after bills to do so were unsuccessful during the regular legislative session — and after Abbott did not include them on his agenda for the ongoing special session. Full Story
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![Ali Cross of the Austin Cheer squad waves a trans flag while her squad mates hold her up on the steps of the state Capitol at a rally against anti-trans legislation on April 28, 2021.]()
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Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has colossal $55 million war chest for 2022 reelection bid
Abbott’s campaign coffers hit the balance after he raised over $18.7 million during the last 10 days of June, his campaign announced Thursday. The campaign said the cash-on-hand total was larger “than any other statewide candidate in Texas history.” Full Story
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![Gov. Greg Abbott signs Senate Bill 2 and Senate Bill 3 at the Texas Capitol on June 8, 2021. The omnibus power grid bills will change the state’s power grid and the people who oversee it.]()
Credit: Sophie Park/The Texas Tribune -
Former legislative leaders from both parties oppose Abbott veto of legislative funding as state defends him
In a new court filing, the attorney general's office said the governor properly used his veto power when he nixed funding for the Legislature in response to House Democrats walkout over a Republican priority bill on elections. Full Story
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Gov. Greg Abbott says more apprehensions, drug seizures justify a border wall. Advocates say he's misrepresenting the numbers.
The governor said Texas needs to build a border wall to reduce migrant apprehensions and fentanyl seizures. But immigration and drug treatment experts say Abbott's oversimplifying the issue. Full Story
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![Asylum-seeking migrant families walked to turn themselves into the U.S. Border Patrol after crossing the Rio Grande river into the United States from Mexico in Roma on June 9, 2021.]()
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State Rep. James White announces primary challenge to Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller
Miller is running for a third term. Full Story
![Rep. James White, R-Hillister, speaks at the Women's [In]Justice Day rally on the south steps of the Capitol on March 8, 2019.](https://thumbnails.texastribune.org/QS6lPNOLq4rH6nnluM-VwuzAVRU=/850x570/smart/filters:quality(75)/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/73f9792e693faec14bc3e1bdfc12c237/06%20Women%20Prisons%20March%20TT%20MG.jpg)
![Rep. James White, R-Hillister, speaks at the Women's [In]Justice Day rally on the south steps of the Capitol on March 8, 2019.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
As Texas Republicans line up for 2022 primaries, Democrats are waiting on Beto O'Rourke and redistricting
“Whatever Beto decides to do is the domino that affects everybody," said Royce Brooks, executive director of Annie’s List, the Texas Democratic women-in-politics group. Full Story
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![Former Democratic Presidential Candidate, Beto O’Rourke, spoke at the ‘For the People Rally' at the Capitol in Austin in support of the expansion of voting rights. June 20, 2021.]()
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Beto O’Rourke tours Texas again to rally Congress to take action on voting rights legislation
O'Rourke has visited at least 19 cities this month and plans to hold a final rally Sunday at the Texas Capitol in Austin. Full Story
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![Reagan Van Coutren takes a selfie with former congressman Beto O'Rourke at Stevenson Park in Abilene on June 5, 2021.]()
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Gov. Greg Abbott wants lawmakers to target critical race theory in a special session, but is so far mum on details
The governor said Wednesday he would add the issue to the agenda for an anticipated special session. Full Story
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![Fifth graders at Jacob’s Well Elementary School in Wimberley lineup at the door as they prepare to walk back to their classroom from the science lab on September 4, 2020.]()
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In a period of conflicts and crises, Gov. Greg Abbott goes all in on the border
The governor's announcement Thursday that Texas would build its own border wall was Abbott's boldest move yet in an intensifying focus on the region. Full Story
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![Gov. Greg Abbott addresses the media about border security at a press conference at Anzalduas Park in Mission on March 9, 2021.]()
Credit: Jason Garza for The Texas Tribune
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