Arrest warrants issued for absent Texas Democratic reps

Gov. Greg Abbott on Monday evening said he’d directed the Texas Department of Public Safety to arrest the missing members and bring them back to the Texas Capitol. It wasn’t immediately clear when law enforcement would be able to do so since their civil arrest warrants, signed by the Texas House speaker, apply only within state lines.

The absent Democratic House members fled on Sunday to stop the Republicans from passing a redrawn congressional map that could net them up to five more seats in the U.S. House. Democratic delegations flew to Chicago, Boston, and Albany, N.Y., to meet with supporters there.

How did Texas Republicans move against the absent lawmakers? Texas House members on Monday afternoon voted 85-6 to send for and arrest Democratic representatives who left the state to block the passage of a new congressional redistricting plan. Afterward, Republican Speaker of the House Dustin Burrows said he signed civil arrest warrants for the absent legislators. A total of 58 representatives were absent, leaving the Texas House without the quorum it needed to advance legislation.

Gov. Abbott also said the Texas Rangers would investigate anyone who accepted donations to help fund the quorum break for possible violation of bribery laws. He previously warned that such fundraising could be a felony and could trigger the absent representatives’ extradition back to Texas.

Have these tactics been used before? Most of the Democratic representatives left the state in 2021 to protest Republicans’ voting restrictions. The House issued civil arrest warrants for their return. Several representatives sued to block the warrants, but their case was eventually struck down at the Texas Supreme Court, according to the Texas Tribune.

How are Democrats in other states responding? New York Gov. Kathy Hochul on Monday said she and state legislators were responding to Texas with their own congressional redistricting plan favoring Democrats. Hochul said Democrats had to combat what she characterized as a Trump-backed legal insurrection. California Gov. Gavin Newsom previously indicated on Aug. 1 he had similar redistricting plans.

Dig deeper: Read my previous report on the redistricting scuffle for more details, including why Democrats oppose the plan.