The latest politics news from The Texas Tribune.
In May, a three-justice panel of the 1st Court of Appeals sent the case back to Collin, Paxton's home county. Prosecutors asked the full court to reconsider. Full Story
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Gov. Greg Abbott vetoed legislation designed to protect dogs earlier this year. Now he's asking the Legislature to fix it — before next year’s elections. Full Story
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In a letter to U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland, Democrats on the U.S. House Judiciary Committee urged the Department of Justice to take action against citizens who file suits against abortion seekers under the new law. Full Story
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Gov. Greg Abbott set the special election date Tuesday. The race has already drawn several candidates from both parties, and Republicans are eager to make inroads in the San Antonio-area district. Full Story
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The facilities had a responsibility to patients who needed other reproductive services, said Jeffrey Hons, CEO of Planned Parenthood of South Texas. Full Story
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On top of redistricting, Abbott wants lawmakers to take up bills on restrictions for transgender student athletes and the allocation of billions of dollars in federal COVID-19 relief funds. Full Story
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SB 1 makes up Republicans’ third attempt to pass a far-reaching law that restricts how and when voters cast ballots. It takes particular aim at voting initiatives used in diverse, Democratic Harris County in the 2020 election. Full Story
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As Abbott and Attorney General Ken Paxton vowed to punish any school district that defied Abbott’s ban on mask mandates, Republican legislators were largely indifferent on the matter. Full Story
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Garland provided no details of how federal officials may challenge one of the nation’s strictest bans on abortion. His statement came days after the U.S. Supreme Court declined to block the law, at least for now. Full Story
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Lawmakers will return to Austin at least one more time this year to redraw the state's political maps. Only Gov. Greg Abbott knows when that will be and if there will be additional special sessions beyond that. Full Story
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The case ricocheted through federal courts for nearly seven years and over several elections, with federal judges ruling that Texas lawmakers discriminated against Hispanic and Black voters when crafting one of the nation’s strictest voter ID laws. Full Story
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Harris County joined a coalition of community and advocacy groups filing lawsuits over Senate Bill 1, arguing the far-reaching rewrite of Texas voting laws violates the U.S. Constitution and numerous federal laws and will suppress voters. Full Story
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Texas’ new near-total abortion ban, one of the most restrictive in the nation, punctuated a week that brought into stunning relief just how far the state’s political pendulum has swung to the right since the 2020 election. Full Story
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Months after the deadly gas killed at least 17 Texans during a massive winter storm, lawmakers have failed to take significant action to protect most of the state’s residents. Full Story
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The Texas Medical Association called two anti-abortion bills unconstitutional and criticized the U.S. Supreme Court for not blocking the broader law from going into effect. Full Story
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Senate Bill 8, which allows anyone to sue anyone who performs or aids in an abortion, marks an unprecedented change to who has standing to bring a lawsuit. The tactic is also an emerging trend in Republican-dominated states that may compromise constitutional rights, some legal experts said. Full Story
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The numbers have stayed within a few hundred of a grim milestone as the state battles the pandemic’s latest surge. Full Story
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The Legislature is expected to return soon for another special session focused on redrawing the state's political maps. Full Story
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Before the second special session ended, lawmakers sent the GOP-backed bill for the governor's signature. Full Story
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The country just noticed what Texas was doing, and although Texans have been watching the debate over this anti-abortion law all year, even some of them were surprised at how quickly the legally protected right to abortion disappeared. Full Story
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