State government

In a wide-ranging conversation with Texas Tribune CEO Evan Smith, Straus launched jabs at two fellow Republicans: Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and President Donald Trump. He declined to weigh in on who should succeed him as the leader of the lower chamber.

Full Story 

In the pilot episode of his new podcast, Point of Order, Evan Smith sits down with Speaker Straus the morning after the midterms to talk everything from the balance of power in the Texas House to President Trump's tweets.

Full Story 

Historic turnout, unusually tight races and a "blue wave" that didn't quite break.

Full Story 

Republicans won every statewide office in Texas, as they have in every election for the past 20 years. But Democrats are taking heart in their narrow losing margins.

Full Story 

Led by female candidates, Texas Democrats picked up 12 Texas House seats from Republicans, mostly in North Texas. But Republicans still have the edge in the lower chamber.

Full Story 

Burton and Huffines were two of three Republican senators in districts where more voters backed Democrat Hillary Clinton over Republican Donald Trump in 2016 or where the president had a narrow winning margin.

Full Story 

Abbott easily bested his Democratic opponent, Lupe Valdez. Meanwhile, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, Attorney General Ken Paxton and Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller faced rare single-digit contests before eventually besting Democratic challengers.

Full Story 

Texans looking to cast their ballots on Election Day were met by a series of delays and technical difficulties that resulted in long lines, and in some cases kept voters from casting their ballots.

Full Story 

During the general election campaign, The Texas Tribune produced six episodes of its Split Decision video series. Watch candidates for lieutenant governor, Congress and agriculture commissioner discuss the various issues in their races.

Full Story 

Attorney General Ken Paxton has run a mostly under-the-radar re-election campaign, but new ads and big donations in the final days suggest Republicans aren't taking anything for granted.

Full Story 

Early voter turnout in the 2018 midterms surpassed turnout from the 2012 presidential election in the 30 Texas counties where most registered voters in the state — 78 percent — live.

Full Story 

Enough judicial seats are up for election that Democrats could flip the four sprawling appellate court districts that serve Austin, Dallas and Houston. Hillary Clinton won those districts in 2016.

Full Story 

Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Beto O’Rourke has raised money hand over fist, but the rest of the statewide ticket has been left relatively empty-handed as many left-leaning megadonors have shifted — or sharply curtailed — their giving.

Full Story 

U.S. Rep. Beto O’Rourke’s spending in particular on the site suggests Facebook is playing a bigger role in his race this year than in any other in Texas — and possibly the country.

Full Story 

In most Dallas-area legislative races this year, incumbent Republicans are on defense. In House District 107, the script is flipped.

Full Story 

Bonnen said in a statement that “after thoughtful consideration with my family, I have decided to heed the call of many of my colleagues.”

Full Story 

The lawyers said the examiner, R3 Digital Forensics, of Austin, "determined that the photo and texts in question could not have come from the senator's phone."

Full Story 

Names like “The Voter Awareness Project” and “Breaking News Texas” are being used by political groups for negative campaign ads on the platform.

Full Story 

In these down-ballot, low-information races, judges' success often depends on the party leaders at the top of the ballot.

Full Story 

Some voters have complained that their votes at the top of the ballot were changed, but the Texas secretary of state's office said the voting machines are not at fault.

Full Story