Texas, Democrats and congressional maps
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Texas Republicans insisted that Democrats have around-the-clock police escorts to ensure they wouldn’t leave again.
Republican lawmakers are expected to quickly pass new voting maps, but Democrats still say they were victorious in the standoff.
Democratic Texas state Rep. Nicole Collier has now spent over 24 hours on the Texas House floor in protest after refusing a Republican demand to be placed under the watch of the state Department of Public Safety.
The Democrats will each be escorted by law enforcement officers to ensure they return Wednesday, as the state GOP prepares to pass a new congressional map.
Generations of Texas politicians have sat, voted and debated in the cushioned leather chairs on the floor of the state’s House of Representatives, but few have spent the night in one — let alone with a bonnet and eye mask.
Texas House Democrats who fled their state to stall a Republican redistricting effort returned on Monday, ending their 15-day holdout.
The Texas State Capitol was cleared of visitors Tuesday evening and closed to the public after a social media threat, the Texas Department of Public Safety said.
Former President Barack Obama has expressed support for California Governor Gavin Newsom's approach to redistricting