Redistricting Bill Heads to Abbott’s Desk

Both the Texas House and Senate have passed a mid-decade redistricting bill that positions the GOP to pick up five additional congressional seats next year. Passage came after House Democrats ended their quorum-breaking walkout while still vowing to pursue legal challenges.

The bill dismantles Democratic strongholds around Houston, Austin and Dallas and increases Republican challenges of also picking up seats in South Texas, The Texas Tribune reported.

In response, California lawmakers seeking to counter Texas’ redistricting move have approved a special election for their voters to consider a new congressional map that would likely add five Democratic seats in California.

“This fight is far from over,” Rep. Gene Wu of Houston, chair of the House Democratic Caucus, said after the map’s passage in that chamber. “Our best shot is in the courts. This part of the fight is over, but it is merely the first chapter.”

Roy Joins Crowded Race to Replace Paxton 

U.S. Rep. Chip Roy, a fiscal conservative often critical of President Trump and his fellow Republicans, has entered the race to replace Ken Paxton as Texas attorney general, The Dallas Morning News reported.

“Texas is under assault – from open-border, radical leftists, and faceless foreign corporations that threaten our sovereignty, safety, and our way of life,” Roy wrote. “It’s time to draw a line in the sand.”

Roy, R-Austin, is in his fourth term in Congress. He joins several other Republican candidates, including state Sens. Joan Huffman of Houston and Mayes Middleton of Galveston, as well as Aaron Reitz, a former deputy attorney general under Paxton. Democrats who have announced plans to run include state Sen. Nathan Johnson of Dallas and former Galveston mayor Joe Jaworski, who ran unsuccessfully for the post in 2022.

Paxton has announced plans to challenge incumbent U.S. Sen. John Cornyn in the March 2026 GOP primary.

House Passes Six Bills Providing Flood Disaster Relief 

The Texas House passed six bills last week aimed at addressing disaster relief, emergency communications systems and preparedness. The bills are in response to the catastrophic Hill Country floods over the July 4th weekend. At least 137 people were killed, primarily in Kerr County, including 27 children and staffers from Camp Mystic on the banks of the Guadalupe River. The News reported the measures include a requirement that youth camps develop emergency management plans and submit them to the state. Legislation also calls for establishing the Texas Interoperability Council, which would create structure and grant programs for multiple agencies to communicate and coordinate on single disasters. That would include hurricanes and mass shootings.

One of the bill’s sponsors, state Rep. Drew Darby, R-San Angelo, spoke surrounded by a bipartisan group of lawmakers.

“When I speak on this bill, for this bill, I hope I’m not just speaking for myself, but for the lost children, the grieving families who have called us, met with us and shared their heartbreak and grief with us,” Darby said.