The governor of Texas, Greg Abbott, confirmed on Monday that he will remove dozens of Democratic legislators who fled the state to prevent a special session debate on a new redistricting plan presented by Republicans.
In a press release, the Trump-aligned governor set a deadline of 3:00 p.m. on Monday for more than 50 Democratic legislators who left the state to return to Texas or face impeachment proceedings if they do not comply.
Abbott stated that the Democrats' actions constituted "an abandonment or resignation of an elected state office" and that Texas law granted him the authority to fill the vacancies. The opposition resorted to this tactic with the aim of preventing a quorum in the legislative session and postponing it indefinitely.
Legisladores demócratas huyeron del estado. Texas seeks to send more Republican representatives to Congress.
"True Texans don't run from a fight. But that's exactly what most Democrats in the Texas Legislature just did," Abbott declared. "Instead of doing their job and voting on urgent legislation that affects the lives of all Texans, they've fled Texas to deprive the House of the quorum needed to meet and carry out its functions," he continued.
The special session began on July 21 and was expected to address agenda items such as flood relief, abortion, taxes, and, most importantly, the redistricting of congressional districts in the United States.
In recent years, Texas has grown in population and has become even more Republican thanks to the state's political leadership, so the Republican Party, with the blessing of President Trump, presented a new electoral map that would cause Democrats to lose up to 5 national seats in the House of Representatives.
La legislatura texana.
This is not the first time Democrats have tried this.
The move by the rebellious legislators consisted of fleeing Texas so there would be no quorum in the legislative chamber and seeking asylum in the state of Illinois, where they held a press conference on Sunday alongside the state's Democratic governor, billionaire JB Pritzker.
This is not the first time opposition representatives have fled the state to block the passage of laws. They used the same tactic in 2021, when they tried to have a debate on an electoral integrity bill postponed.
However, today the difference from 2021 is that Joe Biden is no longer in the federal government to defend them. Now, under the leadership of Trump and Abbott, the rebels could even face bribery charges if they solicit donations to pay the daily $500 fine for missing the special session.
