The Special Session Starts Again

Texas House Democrats returned to the Capitol on Monday after two weeks barnstorming the country in opposition to the state’s mid-decade redistricting proposal.

The members of the minority party returned to applause outside of the chamber. But they face an uphill battle against the proposal which would give Republicans an additional five seats in Congress, as well as a lofty agenda confined to 30 days that includes abortion restrictions, banning transgender people from using private spaces according to their gender identity, a ban on hemp-based products, and flood control and disaster preparation following the deadly July 4 floods in Central Texas.

“We killed the corrupt special session, withstood unprecedented surveillance and intimidation, and rallied Democrats nationwide to join this existential fight for fair representation — reshaping the entire 2026 landscape,” said Texas House Democratic Caucus Chair Gene Wu of Houston.

“We’re returning to Texas more dangerous to Republicans’ plans than when we left. Our return allows us to build the legal record necessary to defeat this racist map in court, take our message to communities across the state and country, and inspire legislators across the country how to fight these undemocratic redistricting schemes in their own statehouses,” continued Wu.

The Democrats who fled the state faced arrest warrants, lawsuits attempting to remove them from office, as well as a reported bomb threat at their hotel in Illinois.

When they returned, Speaker of the House Dustin Burrows, a Republican from Lubbock, sounded demure, welcoming the members back and upholding the traditions of the lower chamber.

"We are done waiting. We have a quorum,” Burrows said. “Now is the time for action. We'll move quickly, and the schedule will be demanding until our work is complete.”

As part of a crackdown on quorum breakers, he assigned Department of Public Safety officers to Democrats who returned. Members were required to sign permission slips to leave the chamber.

Rep. Nicole Collier of Fort Worth declined to sign the slip and remains in the chamber.

“I’ll just sit here, I don’t know… I guess I’ll wait til Wednesday,” when the House reconvenes, she told NBC News.

Democrats face a reckoning going forward

After they declared their symbolic victory, their conditions for returning and restoring quorum hinged on two noble asks: that the House adjourn last Friday and that California Governor Gavin Newsom release a plan to redraw his state’s congressional lines. They didn’t ask that Abbott prioritize disaster relief and flood control following the deadly July 4 floods, per their messaging campaign.

Instead, they returned newly emboldened with no conditions whatsoever, despite walking into an agenda identical to the previous one.

The performances were on display in a press conference on Friday, August 15, the day they declared victory and an hour before Abbott would release the agenda for the upcoming special session. It was expected to be identical to the previous one, as is typical.

“We made a commitment to kill this special session. The governor threatened us. His sycophant supporters make bomb threats against us. The Attorney General was told to hunt us down, and none of it, not one time did you see Texas Democrats shake,” said Rep. John Bucy of Austin.

“Special sessions are supposed to be special. They're supposed to be for the people of Texas, but Governor Abbott continues to show that special sessions are nothing more than a partisan gift,” said Rep. Ann Johnson of Houston. “When Hurricane Harvey happened, he didn't call us back when thousands of people were dying from a public health crisis. He didn't call us back repeatedly when people have been slaughtered by gun violence, he's never called us back.”

“This power grab as it's been called, and really just blatant racism and pulling the seat out from people,” said Mexican American Legislative Caucus Chair Rep. Ramón Romero Jr. of Fort Worth.

But they didn’t answer the actual question: are they willing to break quorum for bills restricting abortion access and transgender rights?

LGBTQ groups were so concerned they issued a joint statement.

“For the past few weeks, Texans and Americans have seen what happens when principled leaders stand up against power grabs, starting a national conversation around partisan gerrymandering, opposing Trump’s and Abbott’s abuses of power, and inspiring countless people across the country to fight back. That fight isn’t over. We encourage Texas leaders to continue their principled stand, to continue to stand up for Texans, and to continue to fight against this circus of a special session. All eyes are on Texas,” representatives from Equality Texas, Human Rights Campaign and Transgender Education Network of Texas said in a statement. (Editor’s note: Texas Signal board chair Rebecca Marques previously served as the state director of the Human Rights Campaign and board member Eric Johnson is on the board of Equality Texas.)

Johnson and Romero returned. Bucy did not. And Collier remains in the House chamber.