How Democrats pressured U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett to step aside for the next generation
Doggett’s shocking decision to retire signals U.S. Rep. Greg Casar’s growing strength among Democrats in Austin politics and in Congress. Full Story
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![U.S. Reps Lloyd Doggett and Rep. Greg Casar, both of Austin, at a press conference with Texas Democratic leaders at the state Capitol on July 31, 2025.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for The Texas Tribune -
Lawmakers redrew Texas’ congressional districts. See how yours changed.
The new maps, which aim to flip five Democratic seats to favor Republicans, will go into effect for the 2026 midterms, barring court intervention. Full Story
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![Shapes of the new Congressional districts with the red Republicans on the left and the blue Democrat ones on the right.]()
Credit: Illustration by Carla Astudillo -
Texas Legislature ends second special session marked by new political maps, slew of conservative wins
Between cracking down on abortion pills and restricting transgender restroom use, lawmakers also tackled flood safety and the STAAR test. Left untouched: Texas’ hemp industry. Full Story
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![House Speaker Dustin Burrows, R-Lubbock, oversees roll call on the House floor in Austin on Sept. 3, 2025.]()
Credit: Kaylee Greenlee for The Texas Tribune
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In rapidly diversifying Tarrant County, a summer of GOP redistricting hits Black and Latino representation
Despite explosive growth turning Tarrant into a racially diverse swing county, two new political maps will leave it with whiter, more Republican representation. Full Story
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![U.S. Rep. Marc Veasey, D-Fort Worth, outside the Eastside YMCA he helped bring about with federal funding, on Aug. 22, 2025. Under the newly-approved redistricting map passed by the Texas Legislature, his congressional district will become majority-white with a majority-Republican electorate.]()
Credit: Desiree Rios for The Texas Tribune -
Gov. Greg Abbott signs new Texas congressional map designed to give GOP five more seats
The governor was expected to sign off on the new district lines, which passed the Legislature last week and aim to flip five Democratic seats in the 2026 midterms. Full Story
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![The Texas Capitol seen on Monday June 30, 2025 in Austin, Texas.]()
Credit: Ronaldo Bolaños/The Texas Tribune -
Texas Rep. John Lujan files to run in redrawn 35th Congressional District
Lujan, a Republican, represents a state House district that covers southern and eastern portions of San Antonio, overlapping with the new congressional seat. Full Story
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![State Rep. John Lujan, R-San Antonio, at the state Capitol in Austin on Jan. 11, 2023.]()
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Former GOP Rep. Mayra Flores switches districts to challenge Rep. Vicente Gonzalez for third time
Flores, who was going to challenge Rep. Henry Cuellar, is returning to her old district after a newly passed map improves Republicans’ chances of ousting Gonzalez. Full Story
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![Mayra Flores, the Republican candidate for the Congressional District 34, speaks to her supporters during her watch party in Harlingen, Texas on Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024.]()
Credit: Gabriel Cárdenas for The Texas Tribune -
The Texas redistricting fight has been the backdrop for the Trump administration to test a new legal strategy
The administration has been testing a strategy of using the courts as leverage to force political outcomes. In Texas, the state’s leaders and conservative activists have been willing, if not eager, collaborators. Full Story
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![A photo collage showing U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, and President Donald Trump in red and black alongside bits of a letter mentioning “unconstitutional racial gerrymanders” and threatening to “seek legal action against the State.”]()
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For their walkout, Texas Democrats get national attention — and partisan retribution at home
Democrats said the walkout inspired a national protest against GOP redistricting. But it also greased the path for other bills they oppose and unified Texas Republicans. Full Story
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![State Rep. Mihaela Plesa, D-Plano, rips up her "permission slip" in front of the Texas House vowing she will stay the night in the House Chamber in support of fellow Democrat Nicole Collier on August 19, 2025. At left is Rep. Rhetta Bowers, D-Garland, at right is Rep. Cassandra Hernandez, D-Farmer's Branch.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for The Texas Tribune -
Fresh off Texas Senate’s approval, new congressional map is target of lawsuits
One lawsuit, filed by LULAC on behalf of 13 Texas residents, states that the redrawn districts in the new map are racially discriminatory and violate voter protection laws. Full Story
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![A map of the proposed changes to Texas congressional districts sits on a Texas House member’s desk on Aug. 20, 2025.]()
Credit: Kaylee Greenlee for The Texas Tribune -
Here are the Republicans who might run for Texas’ newly drawn congressional seats
State Rep. Briscoe Cain kicked off what operatives expect to be a flurry of campaign announcements with a bid for Houston’s 9th Congressional District. Full Story
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![Pedestrians walk along the East Front of the U.S. Capitol Building on Capitol Hill in Washington on Dec. 4, 2020.]()
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Texas Senate approves GOP congressional map, sending plan to Abbott’s desk
Republican lawmakers pushed the map through over fierce Democratic opposition, positioning the GOP to net up to five additional seats in Texas. Full Story
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![Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick gathers the senators at his desk before the final vote on the mid-decade redistricting bill in the Texas Senate on Aug. 22, 2025.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for The Texas Tribune -
Doggett won’t seek reelection to Congress if new district is upheld by courts, paving way for Casar
Casar moved quickly to coalesce Austin Democrats, launching his campaign for the 37th Congressional District Monday with endorsements from 42 current and former Texas elected officials. Full Story
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![U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett of Austin speaks during a press conference with Texas Democratic leaders at the Texas Capitol on July 31, 2025. Democrats are fighting mid-decade Republican redistricting efforts influenced by President Donald Trump. Left to right are U.S. Representatives Lloyd Doggett of Austin, Greg Casar of Austin, Lizzie Fletcher of Houston, Al Green of Houston and Sylvia Garcia of Houston.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for The Texas Tribune -
GOP state Rep. Briscoe Cain files for redrawn 9th Congressional District
The Houston-area district, currently occupied by Democratic Rep. Al Green, is being redrawn by GOP lawmakers to favor Republicans and cover almost entirely new territory. Full Story
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![State Rep. Briscoe Cain, R-Deer Park, speaks with press outside the Texas House on Aug. 18, 2025.]()
Credit: Lorianne Willett for The Texas Tribune -
El Paso judge blocks Ken Paxton from taking legal action against Beto O’Rourke’s political group
The order bars Paxton from prosecuting O’Rourke’s nonprofit or otherwise bringing legal action aimed at revoking Powered by People’s charter. Full Story
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![Former U.S. Rep. Beto O'Rourke speaks at a rally from the south steps of the Capitol in Austin on Aug. 16, 2025.]()
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Texas House approves GOP congressional map after two-week delay from Democrats’ walkout
Republican lawmakers are pursuing the unusual mid-decade redistricting plan amid pressure from President Donald Trump to protect the GOP’s slim majority in the U.S. House. Full Story
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![Democratic State Representatives line up to question State Rep. Todd Hunter, R-Corpus Christi, during the second reading of HB4 in the house chamber in Austin on August 20, 2025.]()
Credit: Kaylee Greenlee for The Texas Tribune -
From Fort Worth to McAllen, Texans could lose clout in Washington if GOP changes political lines
The GOP push to redraw the state’s congressional maps isn’t just a partisan move but one that deeply affects how Texans are represented in Congress. Full Story
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![U.S. Rep Marc Veasey, D-Fort Worth, testifies during a redistricting committee hearing held at the University of Texas at Arlington on July 28, 2025.]()
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Nicole Collier, Texas lawmaker who slept at statehouse, files lawsuit challenging police escorts
The Fort Worth Democrat was confined in the Capitol overnight after refusing to be shadowed by state police, a requirement for lawmakers who had left the state over the GOP redistricting plan. Full Story
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![State Rep. Nicole Collier waves to supporters after she chose to remain in the Texas House chamber until Wednesday after Democratic lawmakers who left the state to deny Republicans the opportunity to redraw the state's 38 congressional districts, returned to the Texas State Capitol in Austin, Texas, U.S. August 19, 2025. Collier is staying because she did not want to sign the required permission slip that would allow lawmakers to leave the Capitol under escort by Department of Public Safety agents.]()
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TribCast: The Texas Democrats return. What happens next?
The gang looks at what’s next in the extra-special session, as Republicans prepare to finally pass a new congressional map. Full Story
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How Texas’ mid-decade redistricting could affect voters in one Houston community
The congressional seat in Texas’ 18th District, a hub of Black political power, has been vacant for months. Redistricting could further disrupt representation for its voters. Full Story
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![Former state Rep., Houston Mayor and U.S. Rep. Sylvester Turner addresses the crowd gathered on steps of Houston’s City Hall in support of a 10,000 Black Men rally on Sunday, Oct. 27, 2024. Turner, who died in March, represented Houston's Congressional District 18.]()
Credit: Douglas Sweet Jr. for The Texas Tribune