Republicans wrested away seats in Pasadena and San Antonio districts last election, and the ousted Democrats are trying to get them back.
Demographics
Explore population trends, diversity, and data shaping Texas communities, politics, and policy.
Mexico fights illegal immigration on its own southern border
Under pressure from the United States, Mexico has tried to cut down the flow of Central American immigrants passing through on their way to the southern U.S. border.
Hiding in Austin, a former El Salvador policeman seeks asylum
After years of trying to help control El Salvador’s violent gangs, the danger became too great for the former detective and his family.
Central American gang’s tentacles reach deep into Texas, United States
Only about 800 of the estimated 20,000 gang members in the Houston area belong to the MS-13, but police consider them a top-level threat to public safety in Texas.
What it would mean to build a U.S.-Mexico border wall
A journey from San Diego to Brownsville offers an up-close view into what it would actually take to complete Donald Trump’s proposed wall along the U.S.-Mexico border.
Lawmakers could face tough decision on border security funding
The author of the state’s omnibus border security bill raised doubts Tuesday about whether lawmakers will want to provide hundreds of millions in additional money to continue operations.
After a lull in 2015, border apprehensions surge
Apprehension of families and unaccompanied children surged again along the Texas-Mexico border in 2016, reflecting the new prevalence of illegal immigration from Central America.
El Salvador journalist faces threats from gangs, government
Jorge Beltran, a newspaper editor in the murder capital of the world, had to move his own family to keep them safe from gang violence.
Bones from decades of conflict pass through San Salvador morgue
The bodies are found in abandoned fields, along river banks and in hastily dug graves. They end up in the central morgue’s Department of Forensic Anthropology, a wrenching testament to the human toll of decades of violence.
Court’s immigration ruling could affect Texas “sanctuary city” debate
An Illinois judge ruled that federal officials can’t ask local jails to hold on to possible criminal immigrants without a warrant.



