The latest politics news from The Texas Tribune.
Harris County joined a coalition of community and advocacy groups filing lawsuits over Senate Bill 1, arguing the far-reaching rewrite of Texas voting laws violates the U.S. Constitution and numerous federal laws and will suppress voters. Full Story
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Texas’ new near-total abortion ban, one of the most restrictive in the nation, punctuated a week that brought into stunning relief just how far the state’s political pendulum has swung to the right since the 2020 election. Full Story
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Months after the deadly gas killed at least 17 Texans during a massive winter storm, lawmakers have failed to take significant action to protect most of the state’s residents. Full Story
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The Texas Medical Association called two anti-abortion bills unconstitutional and criticized the U.S. Supreme Court for not blocking the broader law from going into effect. Full Story
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The numbers have stayed within a few hundred of a grim milestone as the state battles the pandemic’s latest surge. Full Story
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Senate Bill 8, which allows anyone to sue anyone who performs or aids in an abortion, marks an unprecedented change to who has standing to bring a lawsuit. The tactic is also an emerging trend in Republican-dominated states that may compromise constitutional rights, some legal experts said. Full Story
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The Legislature is expected to return soon for another special session focused on redrawing the state's political maps. Full Story
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Before the second special session ended, lawmakers sent the GOP-backed bill for the governor's signature. Full Story
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The country just noticed what Texas was doing, and although Texans have been watching the debate over this anti-abortion law all year, even some of them were surprised at how quickly the legally protected right to abortion disappeared. Full Story
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Medical and reproductive health experts say the reference to a heartbeat is medically inaccurate as an embryo does not have a developed heart at six weeks’ gestation. Full Story
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The bill, approved by the Senate and never considered by the House, would have allowed state and local party chairs to file requests to launch audits, but Republicans say the legislation would not have spawned a debacle akin to the controversial review underway in Arizona. Full Story
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The law requires social media platforms like Twitter and Instagram to produce regular reports of removed content and disclose their content regulations procedures. Full Story
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From abortion restrictions to guns, the Texas Legislature's regular session Republican victories were just the beginning. Full Story
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Under Gov. Greg Abbott’s border security push, Texas state police have arrested hundreds of migrants in the conservative county, usually after spotting them on cargo trains or walking remote ranch lands. Sent to a state prison retooled as an immigration jail, many men were left without lawyers for weeks. Full Story
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After two months, the donations had petered out around $1 million. But the effort saw a major boost in August. Full Story
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On this week's episode, Matthew speaks with Neelam and James about the state's new abortion law and the final days of the special session of the Texas Legislature. Full Story
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The legislation will need another stamp of approval in the House before it heads to the Senate, which has not yet debated its version of the proposal on the floor. Full Story
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West had insisted his wife had not been drinking the night she was arrested, calling the arrest “insidious.” Dallas police said they stand by the officer’s decision to arrest Graham-West based on the information available at the time. Full Story
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Two Democratic state senators filed the federal suit arguing the Texas Constitution does not allow lawmakers to meet in special session to draw up state House and Senate districts. They’re asking the courts to do it instead. Full Story
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The election is to replace former state Rep. Jake Ellzey, R-Waxahachie, who was elevated to Congress last month. Full Story
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