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2d ago

Texas House Poised to Advance Trump-Backed Map as California Races a Court Fight Over Counterplan

Police escorts in Texas underscore a fast-moving fight now facing a California Supreme Court challenge.

State Rep. Nicole Collier talks on the phone from the floor of the House, where she has chosen to remain until Wednesday, after Democratic lawmakers who had left the state to prevent Republicans from redrawing Texas’s 38 congressional districts returned to the Capitol in Austin, Texas, U.S., August 18, 2025. Collier is staying in the chamber because she did not want to sign the required permission slip allowing lawmakers to leave the Capitol under escort by Department of Public Safety agents. Texas House of Representatives Minority Leader Gene Wu/Handout via REUTERS. THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. REFILE - CORRECTING INFORMATION FROM "U.S. REP." TO "STATE REP.\
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Assembly Republican leader James Gallagher speaks in opposition to Democrats' plan to advance a partisan effort to redraw California congressional map at a press conference on Monday, Aug. 18, 2025, in Sacramento, Calif.
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Overview

  • Texas Republicans scheduled House debate Wednesday on a mid-decade congressional map designed to add five GOP-leaning seats, with the Senate expected to take it up as early as Thursday.
  • Democrats ended a two-week walkout but were placed under Department of Public Safety supervision; Rep. Nicole Collier refused an escort and stayed on the House floor overnight in protest.
  • House Speaker Dustin Burrows required returning Democrats to sign written agreements and accept round-the-clock monitoring to ensure a quorum for the vote.
  • California Democrats advanced bills to place a new congressional map before voters on Nov. 4, seeking roughly five Democratic-leaning seats and requiring two‑thirds support in both chambers to reach the ballot.
  • California Republicans filed an emergency petition to the state Supreme Court arguing the fast-track process violates the constitution’s 30-day public review rule, as national party groups prepared legal and political campaigns.