[Tim Wilson from Blaine, MN, USA, CC BY 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons]

Texas Democrats Flee State in Bid to Block GOP Redistricting Plan

In a dramatic reprise of tactics last used in 2021, dozens of Texas Democrats are set to leave the state Sunday afternoon in an effort to thwart a Republican-led redistricting push. According to two sources familiar with the plan who spoke to Politico, the lawmakers intend to break quorum in the Texas House, thereby stalling GOP efforts to advance a controversial mid-decade remap of congressional districts.

“Breaking quorum is an extreme step. It should be a last resort,” State Rep. James Talarico said last Tuesday. Talarico was among the 50 Democrats who fled Texas four years ago to protest a Republican-backed election bill.

This time, the Democratic delegation is expected to head to Illinois, whose Democratic Governor J.B. Pritzker, a billionaire, has accused Texas Republicans of “cheating” by moving to redraw the congressional map ahead of the 2026 midterms. The proposed map would create five new GOP-leaning districts—an aggressive maneuver aimed at securing Republican control of the U.S. House in the next national cycle. They will likely stay in a Hyatt, since Pritzker is the heir to the Hyatt hotel chain, and likely tweet about billionaires in control of Texas politics. Illinois is considered one of the most gerrymandered states in the country. 

Adding to the controversy, the redistricting package has been bundled with financial relief for families impacted by last month’s catastrophic floods, which killed more than 120 people. That legislative linkage has sparked sharp backlash among Democrats, who view it as political coercion and a cynical misuse of emergency aid.

The walkout, if executed, could plunge the legislature into gridlock and trigger a wider national battle over redistricting strategy and electoral power. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has already stated that the “rogue” legislators could face arrest.

The standoff echoes the 2021 clash, when Republican Gov. Greg Abbott called for the arrest of Democrats who left the state—a precedent that may resurface in what promises to be another constitutional and political showdown.

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3 Comments

  1. The fact that they are cowards and ran away is a tacit admission on their part that they know they cannot win based on merit, even though they have benefitted from years (decades?) of manipulating districts to favor their party. They don’t like it when their tactics are used against them. Smells suspiciously like malfeasance to me.
    Never mind that their main argument is that their districts have to be maintained as they are in order to ‘favor’ specific demographic groups that won’t be ‘fairly’ represented except by a member of that group, whether they are qualified or not.

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  2. Actually there are dire penalties for politicians abandoning their responsibilities to the state legislature they belong to. They can and should be removed from office. I come from a state where a group of democrats did just that. When a politician takes the oath of office that is a binding contract with the citizens of that state. They are expected to perform their required duties to the best of their ability to the citizens that placed their trust in the person . If they chose not to do that the contract with the public has been broken and their service can be severed. The Legislature Sargent At Arms can be ordered and has the authority to arrest the politicians for abandoning their office. The SAA can also prevent the rogue legislators from entering the Legislative Chambers without permission of the Speakers of the individual
    houses.

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