The latest Texas Senate news from The Texas Tribune.
The candidates for the 2016 elections have filed their papers, and the ballots have some familiar names. There are perennial candidates, former officeholders who want their own jobs back and candidates with the same names as their opponents. Full Story
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When political districts are based on population, each official represents the same number of people. If the lines were based instead on voting-age populations, their districts could have large variations in the numbers of people — voters plus nonvoters — they represent and serve. Full Story
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House Speaker Joe Straus issued more than 150 interim charges Wednesday, directing committees to study issues such as the effectiveness of border security operations and the impact of the plummeting cost of oil on the local economy. Full Story
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During the keynote sessions of the 2015 Texas Tribune Festival, we featured one-on-one conversations with Dan Patrick, Joe Straus, Nancy Pelosi and Julián Castro. You can watch those interviews and videos of our other keynote sessions here. Full Story
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The State Keynote track at the 2015 Texas Tribune Festival included interviews with Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and Texas House Speaker Joe Straus, as well as a pair of panel discussions focused on the Texas Legislature. Full Story
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Here's full video of our conversation with Texas House Speaker Joe Straus on Oct. 17 at the 2015 Texas Tribune Festival. Full Story
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Here's video of our "Really, How Conservative Was the 84th Session?" panel from Oct. 17 at The 2015 Texas Tribune Festival. Panelists included State Sens. Paul Bettencourt and Konni Burton and state Reps. Stephanie Klick, Matt Rinaldi and Jonathan Stickland. Full Story
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Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick unapologetically stuck to his guns in an on-stage interview Friday evening — and his religious views, and the Legislature’s conservative budget and the state’s reluctance to embrace Medicaid expansion and the federal health care law. Full Story
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Here's full video of my conversation Friday with Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick at The Texas Tribune Festival. Full Story
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Following a legislative session in which lawmakers debated whether to cut property taxes, business taxes, sales taxes or a combination of the three, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick signaled an interest Wednesday in continuing the conversation. Full Story
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Legislation that would have blocked public employees from paying union or association dues with paycheck deductions failed last session. But the Senate is reopening the issue, and it could play against a powerful House chairman up for reelection next year. Full Story
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State leaders are sending a signal that lawmakers are going to continue walking the margins between church and state, and religion and politics, through another election and legislative cycle. Full Story
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By the numbers, there are some federal and state legislative districts in Texas that can be considered competitive in November general elections. There just aren't many of them. Full Story
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It should come as no surprise when political plotters and schemers try to pack a primary election to force an incumbent into a runoff. Their hope is that the runoff's greater concentration of partisan voters will be harder on the incumbents. Full Story
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As the presidential political season starts in Texas, here's a look — based on the results in past general elections — at how the state's congressional and statehouse districts stack up for the candidates from both parties. Full Story
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Allowing more people to register their opinions on issues before state legislators is technologically easy. But is it really something legislators want to do? Full Story
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An open-seat endorsement from Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick could strengthen a conservative core in the Texas Senate, and with it Patrick's position in the Legislature and the Legislature's position in state government. Full Story
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In a victory for racetracks and a rebuff to state lawmakers, the Texas Racing Commission on Tuesday declined to outlaw historical racing in the state. Full Story
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Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who initially planned to stay away from endorsements in Republican primaries, said Tuesday he is backing state Rep. Bryan Hughes of Mineola in the Republican primary race to replace state Sen. Kevin Eltife of Tyler. Full Story
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Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, abandoning a decision to stay out of legislative primaries, endorsed a half-dozen Republican senators for re-election on Friday, saying he changed his mind because he wants his incumbent senators back for another session. Full Story
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