Texas Democratic Party

In Democrats’ low-information judicial primaries, gender and ballot names may drive voters’ decisions

by Emma Platoff

Fourteen Democrats are competing for seven seats on the Texas Supreme Court and Court of Criminal Appeals. How do you win when no one knows your name? Full Story 

Judge calls opponent “selfish” for wanting to “break barriers” as first elected female chief justice of Texas Supreme Court

by Emma Platoff

Jerry Zimmerer, an appellate judge in Houston, said his campaign differs from Amy Clark Meachum's because “I actually want the best candidate to win.” Full Story 

Chris Bell has been running for office for decades. Is he the Democrat to take on John Cornyn?

by Cassandra Pollock

Bell is the only candidate running in the U.S. Senate Democratic primary who has experience in Washington, D.C. But he has more experience running campaigns than winning them. Full Story 

Texas updates election reporting system to allow for tally of Super Tuesday delegates

by Alexa Ura

After Democrats raised the prospect of delays in calculating presidential delegates on election night, the secretary of state's office has updated the system counties will use to report results on March 3. Full Story 

TribCast: Forecasting a Super Tuesday delay in Texas and the upcoming primary

by Alexa Ura and Michael Rey de Leon

On this week's TribCast, Alexa talks to Matthew, Patrick and Ross about an expected delay in Super Tuesday delegate totals in Texas and what we're keeping an eye on for the upcoming primaries. Full Story 

New Texas election process has Democrats expecting a delay in Super Tuesday delegate totals

by Alexa Ura

Democratic leaders say the Texas secretary of state's office told them that a full accounting of how many delegates each presidential contender wins won't be available on election night. But the secretary of state's office says it does plan to have the results tabulated. Full Story 

Here's how Texas Democrats dole out their 261 delegates in the presidential primary

by Megan Menchaca

Some delegates are selected statewide, others are determined within state Senate districts and others go to members of Congress or national committee members, who can vote for the candidate of their choice. Full Story 

GOP super PAC focused on voter registration builds massive organization

by Patrick Svitek

Engage Texas disclosed Friday that it raised another $2.3 million over the past six months — and that it has also grown to have almost 300 staff members. Full Story 

National Democrats jump into new lawsuit over Texas voter registration requirements

by Alexa Ura

Sensing opportunity in 2020, the Texas Democratic Party and campaign arms for Democrats in the U.S. House and Senate are ramping up legal challenges to voting restrictions, this time arguing that the state is unconstitutionally rejecting voter registration applications with digital signatures. Full Story 

Rick Miller’s swift demise shines light on the shifting politics of Fort Bend County and the Texas House

by Alex Samuels and Cassandra Pollock

The drama that unfolded served as the latest reminder that seats in one of the country’s most ethnically diverse counties are some of the most competitive in the state heading into the 2020 election cycle. Full Story 

Optimistic Democrats are lining up to run for Texas’ high courts in 2020

by Emma Platoff

The depth of the bench for non-marquee statewide races, like the state’s two high courts and the Railroad Commission, is a measure of how high Democratic hopes have soared ahead of the 2020 election. Full Story 

Sen. José Rodríguez, an El Paso Democrat, announces his retirement

by Cassandra Pollock and Patrick Svitek

Rodríguez, who was first elected in 2010 to represent Senate District 29, said he will retire from the Senate at the end of this term in January 2021. Full Story 

How to watch the third 2020 Democratic debate in Houston

by Megan Menchaca

ABC News and Univision will be broadcasting the debate with Beto O’Rourke, Julián Castro and eight other qualifying presidential candidates in Texas on Thursday. Full Story 

Texas Democrats plot path to flipping state in 2020

by Patrick Svitek

The state party has high hopes and ambitious goals in a new document outlining their path to turning the state blue. Full Story 

Texas House Democrats ask Gov. Greg Abbott to call a special session after two mass shootings

by Cassandra Pollock and Chase Karacostas

Members of the House minority say they want to consider legislation “closing the background check loopholes” and “banning the sale of high-capacity magazines.” Full Story 

Analysis: 2020’s real Texas House prize fights are in the general election — not the GOP primaries

by Ross Ramsey

While the state's political class is entranced with allegations that Republican House leaders would like to see some of their GOP colleagues replaced, the real stakes are on what happens when the 2020 primaries are over — and which party is in control when it's time for redistricting in 2021. Full Story 

Analysis: Texas Democrats sensing a theme in Republican misfortunes

by Ross Ramsey

With the speaker of the house and state attorney general under fire, the long-suffering party sees a potentially helpful thread heading into 2020. Full Story 

Texas Democrats sue over Michael Quinn Sullivan and House Speaker Dennis Bonnen meeting

by Cassandra Pollock and Emma Platoff

In their lawsuit, the Democrats contend Bonnen, Sullivan and state Rep. Dustin Burrows violated campaign finance laws and demanded that Sullivan produce a recording of the meeting that he has so far played only for select Republicans. Full Story 

Analysis: After an encouraging 2018, Texas Democrats taking some risks

by Ross Ramsey

The 2018 elections put some cracks in the Republican Party's dominance in Texas elections — enough to attract Democratic candidates into races they used to be too risk averse to consider. Full Story 

The Texas Republican Party platform supports some marijuana expansions. So why doesn’t Dan Patrick?

by Forrest Milburn

Earlier this month, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said a bill that decriminalizes possession of small amounts of marijuana was "dead on arrival" in the Senate. But his party's platform supports marijuana decriminalization. So what gives? Full Story