Heider Garcia, celebrated elections chief from Tarrant County, set to run elections in Dallas
Garcia will replace Michael Scarpello, who had led the elections department in Dallas since 2020. Full Story
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![Tarrant County Elections Administrator Heider Garcia speaks with ballot board workers inside the Tarrant County's central count station on election night. on May 6, 2023.]()
Credit: Azul Sordo for The Texas Tribune -
Paxton defense attorney to challenge Texas House Republican who voted for impeachment
Little filed paperwork for House District 65, currently held by freshman Rep. Kronda Thimesch, R-Lewisville. The filing, made public Wednesday, allows him to start raising money for the office. Full Story
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![Defense attorney Mitch Little questions whistleblower Ryan Vassar on the fourth day of suspended Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s impeachment trial in the Senate Chamber at the Texas Capitol on Friday, Sept. 8, 2023, in Austin.]()
Credit: Sam Owens/Pool via San Antonio Express-News -
San Marcos forced to pay $175,000 to Wendy Davis, other Democrats after “Trump Train” incident
Four people on a Biden campaign bus accused police of ignoring requests for help as they drove on Interstate 35 surrounded by Trump supporters. They alleged that officers “joked about the victims and their distress.” A second lawsuit related to the incident remains pending. Full Story
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![Colin McLaren, an advance staff member for the Biden-Harris campaign in Texas, speaks to Democrats at Vera Minter Park Wednesday in downtown Abilene on Oct. 28, 2020. The campaign bus swung through the Key City for a brief stop to support local candidates, as well as promote the Presidential campaign of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris.]()
Credit: Ronald W. Erdrich/Reporter-News via REUTERS -
Defend Texas Liberty PAC names new president after leader met with white supremacist Nick Fuentes
Luke Macias, a longtime conservative political consultant, is listed as the new president of the conservative PAC on its website. Jonathan Stickland, the former president, met with Fuentes for nearly seven hours. Full Story
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![State Rep. Jonathan Stickland, R-Bedford, on the House floor on May 21, 2019.]()
Credit: Juan Figueroa/The Texas Tribune -
Three Texas Republicans help block Jim Jordan from becoming U.S. House speaker in first vote
Reps. Jake Ellzey, Kay Granger and Tony Gonzales joined 17 other House Republicans to block the Ohio Republican from the gavel. Full Story
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![U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan arrives for a House Republican caucus meeting in the U.S. Capitol, Thursday, Oct. 12, 2023, in Washington, D.C.]()
Credit: Julia Nikhinson for The Texas Tribune -
How Texas lawmakers are trying to deter illegal immigration and secure the border
Two Texas House members and an immigration lawyer sat down with Matthew Watkins, the Tribune’s managing editor of news and politics, to discuss the current state of Texas’ border and immigration bills that lawmakers are weighing during the special session. Full Story
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After fighting for Uvalde residents, Roland Gutierrez struggles to break through crowded field to challenge Ted Cruz
The Democrat has dedicated significant energy to probing law enforcement’s response to the Uvalde school shooting. But he faces a fundraising deficit against U.S. Rep. Colin Allred of Dallas. Full Story
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![State Sen. Roland Gutierrez, D-San Antonio, holds a press conference to go over legislation on gun safety laws at the state Capitol in Austin on Feb. 14, 2023.]()
Credit: Evan L'Roy/The Texas Tribune -
Ban on COVID vaccine mandates by private businesses, including health care facilities, passes Texas Senate
The bill offers no exceptions for doctors’ offices, clinics or other health facilities. Senators agreed to let those entities require unvaccinated employees to wear personal protective gear or take other “reasonable” measures to manage the spread. Full Story
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![Medical personnel ralled against Houston Methodist Hospital's COVID-19 vaccine mandate outside the Baytown facility on June 7, 2021. Several employees who chose not to inoculate themselves worked their last shift Monday and will face job termination, a policy criticized by the protesters as unfair and unauthorized.]()
Credit: Pu Ying Huang for The Texas Tribune -
Jim Jordan snags more Texas support in troubled bid for House Speaker
A handful of Texas Republicans back the Ohio Republican’s speaker bid after initially backing the former frontrunner, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise Full Story
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![U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan arrives for a House Republican caucus meeting in the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Thursday, Oct. 12, 2023.]()
Credit: Julia Nikhinson for The Texas Tribune -
Federal judge rules Galveston County commissioner maps violate Voting Rights Act
Judge Jeffrey V. Brown, a Trump appointee, found the county districts denied Black and Latino voters “the equal opportunity to participate in the political process.” Full Story
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![Galveston County Commissioner Stephen Holmes chats with activist Roxy D. Hall Williamson after a Galveston County Commissioners Court meeting in Galveston, TX, on Monday, April 4, 2022.]()
Credit: Annie Mulligan for The Texas Tribune -
Texas’ main voucher bill seeks to avoid other states’ mistakes but keeps ideas that attracted criticism
Like in Texas, voucher programs in other states sparked vigorous debates, came with the same promises and faced similar concerns. Not all predictions came true. Full Story
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![An empty classroom at Chapa Middle School in Kyle on Aug. 24, 2021.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune -
Distrust of voting machines throws a Texas county’s election planning into chaos
There’s no evidence the machines are insecure, but one Kerr County commissioner is pushing to get rid of them. Two elections administrators have already quit over the commotion. Full Story
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![A group of volunteers demonstrate a hand count of ballots during an Election Integrity Town Hall at the Hill Country Youth Event Center in Kerrville on Aug. 22, 2023. The event was hosted by Kerr County Commissioner Rich Paces, who has since February advocated that the county get rid of its voting machines and instead use volunteers to hand count election results.]()
Credit: Natalia Contreras/Votebeat -
Gov. Greg Abbott says he’ll add teacher pay to the special session — but only if lawmakers pass school voucher bill
Though lawmakers have drafted a bill to increase public school funding and teacher salaries, it cannot pass during the special session unless Abbott adds those issues to his agenda. Full Story
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![Gov. Greg Abbott speaks about the recent 88th Legislative Session to an audience at the Texas Public Policy Foundation offices in Austin, on June 2, 2023. Abbott recounted policy victories in regards to fentanyl and the border crisis, as well as limiting gender affirming care and banning DEI practices in higher education. Abbott ended the event by promising to call a special session for school choice, after the current special session for property tax resolves.]()
Credit: Evan L'Roy/The Texas Tribune -
School voucher bill gets initial approval in the Texas Senate, heads over to a more skeptical House
The Senate also approved Senate Bill 2, which would infuse $5.2 billion to school districts to help them with teacher raises and rising costs. Gov. Greg Abbott said he would add those items to the special session’s agenda once lawmakers approve a voucher program. Full Story
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![Students work at their desks at Blanco Vista Elementary School in San Marcos on Monday August, 23, 2021.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for the Texas Tribune -
GOP presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy draws hundreds of young conservatives at UT-Austin event
The presidential contender visited the University of Texas at Austin Thursday where he answered student questions and said the U.S. shouldn’t aid Ukraine in its war against Russia. Full Story
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![Vivek Ramaswamy, GOP presidential candidate, speaks at Wofford College in Spartanburg, South Carolina, on Oct. 9, 2023.]()
Credit: Alex Hicks Jr./Spartanburg Herald-Journal via REUTERS -
Here’s who gets money from Defend Texas Liberty, the PAC whose leader met with white supremacist Nick Fuentes
The group has funded candidates and groups like the Texas GOP who have pushed fellow Republicans to take a harder line against things like illegal immigration and transgender people. Full Story
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![Former state Rep. Jonathan Stickland, R-Bedford, on the House floor on May 25, 2019.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Rep. Andrew Murr took on Ken Paxton and lost. He has no regrets.
The five-term House member, and his mustache, gained notoriety during the high-profile impeachment of Paxton. He warned tolerating corruption could hurt Republicans in the long term. Full Story
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![State Rep. Andrew Murr, R-Junction, poses for a portrait on Tuesday, Oct. 3, 2023, in Junction.]()
Credit: Eli Hartman/The Texas Tribune -
Chip Roy, Michael Cloud say they’re still against Scalise after he wins party nomination for U.S. House speaker
The two Texas holdouts, combined with a handful of other members who have vowed to vote against Rep. Steve Scalise, could delay the selection of the next House speaker. Full Story
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![House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-LA) is pursued by reporters after he won a majority of votes in the House Republican caucus to become their nominee for next Speaker of the House during a Republican meeting held behind closed doors in the Longworth House office building on Capitol Hill in Washington on Oct. 11, 2023.]()
Credit: REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque -
Dan Patrick says PAC leader’s meeting with white supremacist was a “blunder,” but will keep group’s $3 million contribution
Two other Republican lawmakers are giving away donations after Nick Fuentes was seen visiting the office building associated with Defend Texas Liberty PAC President Jonathan Stickland. The meeting has roiled the party, leading to many Republicans calling on their peers to return money from the PAC. Full Story
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![Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick speaks to media during a press conference in the offices of Blakemore &
Associates in Houston, TX, on Tuesday, June 13, 2023.]()
Credit: Annie Mulligan for The Texas Tribune -
U.S. Rep. Colin Allred raises $4.7 million in third quarter of U.S. Senate campaign
The Dallas congressman collected the sum over the last three months, continuing to show he could be Cruz’s biggest financial threat in the Democratic primary. Full Story
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![U.S. Rep. Colin Allred, D-Dallas, speaks in favor of voting rights legislation during a Congressional Black Caucus press conference in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 12, 2022.]()
Credit: REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz