The U.S. Justice Department said Monday that new political maps for the Texas House and the state’s congressional delegation don’t protect the electoral power of the state’s minority populations as required by the federal Voting Right Act.
Texas Senate
Posted in
State Government
Shapiro Won’t Run Again; Others Jump In
After two decades in the Texas Senate, Plano Republican Florence Shapiro said this afternoon that she won’t seek re-election. State Rep. Ken Paxton, R-McKinney, starts as a strong replacement candidate.
Posted in
Politics
The Texas Weekly Index
Lots of things affect election outcomes. Candidates. Money. Issues. Surprises. But some of the results are wired into district maps, through redistricting. Here’s our charting of the political atmosphere — Republican or Democratic — in each of the House, Senate and congressional districts drawn by the Legislature this year.
Posted inState Government
Two House Members Want Promotions
State Rep. Randy Weber, R-Pearland, wants to go to Congress: He announced today he’ll run for the seat now held by U.S. Ron Paul, R-Surfside. And state Rep. Rodney Anderson made his intentions for state Senate official.
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Guides
Texplainer: Can Texas Use the Rainy Day Fund to Fight Wildfires?
Gov. Rick Perry has said the Rainy Day Fund should be preserved as an insurance policy against natural disasters, but Texas can’t actually dip into it until the next legislative session — in 2013.
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Politics
Challenge to Texas Redistricting Opens in Federal Court
The state’s new political maps are now in the hands of the federal government. An army of lawyers lined up before the start of federal hearings on Tuesday, lugging boxes of papers and briefcases bulging with the scribbled notes and other arguments they’ll present over the next two weeks.
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Inside Intelligence
Inside Intelligence: The Pecking Order
Hand a bunch of insiders a list of 31 senators and ask what’s going to happen next, and you turn them into outsiders.
Posted in
State Government
Inside or Out: Who’ll Run the Texas Senate?
The restricted club that is the Texas Senate will be invaded by noisy conservative voters and activists next year if senators have to choose a new leader from their own ranks, reprising the 2011 contretemps over the choice for Speaker of the House.
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Inside Intelligence
Inside Intelligence: The Ultimate Insiders’ Vote
In which we ask the insiders how the selection of a new lieutenant governor will go, if David Dewhurst moves on to another job after the 2012 elections.
Posted in
Politics
Updated: Jackson Chooses Congress Over State Senate
As expected, state Sen. Mike Jackson, R-La Porte, will run for Congress next year instead of for re-election to the Texas Senate. State Rep. Larry Taylor, R-Friendswood, may run for his Senate seat.
