Texas AG Threatens to Vacate Democratic Lawmakers’ Seats After Walkout Over Gerrymandering Fight
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is doubling down, vowing to strip the seats of Democrats who fled the state to block Republican-backed congressional maps.
In a power play straight out of the political theater playbook, Texas Democrats skipped town to deny Republicans the quorum needed to pass maps widely criticized as racial gerrymanders designed to lock in five GOP seats ahead of next year’s midterms.
Paxton’s response? A legal blitz threatening to declare those lawmakers’ seats vacant if they don’t return by Friday.
The Democrats say they’re standing on the front lines of the “voting rights fight of our lifetime,” accusing Republicans and Trump allies of blatantly rigging elections and ignoring urgent flood relief efforts. Meanwhile, Republican Gov. Greg Abbott has ordered arrests and accused Democrats of shirking their duties—calling out the walkout as “jet-setting runaways looking for headlines.”
This standoff has escalated beyond Texas, with national heavyweights like Obama condemning the maps as an outright power grab undermining democracy. The Democratic National Committee chair put it bluntly: “We’re bringing a knife to a knife fight.”
Adding a twist, Paxton filed his own petition claiming the governor lacks authority to pursue the legal challenge—a messy legal battle that’s just heating up and will decide whether Texas Democrats keep their seats or get shown the door.
This should get interesting.
Source: UPI