Reporting and commentary on the Legislature, campaigns, and elected officials
Attorney and former Texas Solicitor General Jonathan F. Mitchell is known for his ability to identify legal loopholes where no one else does.
With taxpayer money now committed to the project, alongside private pledges, the oil billionaire’s push to create a conservative think tank on the Austin campus nears the goal line.
The former Bush adviser pledges to help Texas Democrats win in 2022—including, possibly, by putting his hat in the ring.
School board meetings in Texas's most Republican large county have devolved into shouting matches about curriculum, leaving many teachers worried about the academic year ahead.
Our diverse big cities and suburbs are driving the state forward. Our leaders need to let Houston be Houston and Beaumont be Beaumont.
Three failed candidates, including Beto O’Rourke, lead ambitious voter-registration efforts. And they're assuming no changes are needed in their positions.
COVID outbreaks, covert vacations, anger at President Biden, and the other rich subplots in House Democrats’ attempt to block a restrictive state voting law.
Bell County struggles with misinformation and conspiracy theories as the deadly Delta variant spreads like wildfire.
Local officials in South Texas are scrambling to figure out what the governor is building in their communities.
Buried in the GOP proposal is a requirement that could—whether by intention or just sloppy legislative work—disenfranchise thousands of voters.
Primary challengers say Texas’s governor is weak. The failure to pass new restrictions on voting, a GOP priority, will add fuel to their criticism.
At a conservative gathering in Texas, two Florida Men are the winners, while the movement itself seems adrift.
Out of options in Austin, House Democrats fly to Washington, D.C., where they plan to press Congress to pass federal legislation protecting ballot access.
The next party leader could continue to wage war on errant Republican elected officials or oversee a détente.
GOP challengers have announced bids against Greg Abbott, Ken Paxton, and Sid Miller, while a forlorn Democratic party casts its eyes on Matthew McConaughey.
The outlandish conspiracy theory has made legions of believers into political activists. And the Texas GOP benefits from that.
Texas Democrats felt slighted by the president’s campaign in 2020, but Emmy Ruiz and Natalie Montelongo have given them a voice in the White House.
Governor Greg Abbott said the Lege has done everything necessary to prevent future blackouts. We ask four experts whether that’s true.
A wild year begat an even wilder legislative session. Lawmakers faced blackouts, a pandemic, and their own worst impulses. Amid the chaos, we plucked out the leaders—and the losers.
The Dallas businessman has a talent for alienating powerful Republicans, but he’s running on a platform that embraces their scorn.
Fearing primary challenges, GOP lawmakers focused mostly on wedge issues such as guns and abortion, rather than the COVID-19 pandemic and the failure of the state’s electric grid.
After weeks of debating how to best combat the voting-restriction legislation, Democrats find a rare, though likely temporary, victory.
Before a Democratic walkout blocked the passage of an "election integrity" bill in the Texas Lege, members of the partnership had split over how to respond to the legislation.
Lyndon B. Johnson rehearsed his speech in the bathroom, the new fountain doused the guests, and the booze flowed freely.
Greg Abbott signed a bill banning abortion once a heartbeat can be detected and letting Texans sue those who “aid and abet” a woman getting the procedure.
The closest vote of Texas' legislative session concerned face coverings and the ability of the governor and county officials to deal with a future pandemic.
Members of the minority party knew they didn’t have the votes to kill Senate Bill 7, but won a few useful amendments behind closed doors.
In her new book ‘On Juneteenth,’ the Pulitzer Prize–winning historian takes on the Texas holiday that has gone national.
He challenged a reporter to perform the calisthenics, then decided to do them himself.
A House bill doesn’t identify the capital city by name, but would make it the lone municipality in Texas whose noise ordinances are set by the Lege.
A recent analysis found Texas’s senior senator is the most prolific tweeter in Congress.
After Donald Trump’s endorsement, Susan Wright separated from the pack in the crowded congressional special election.
Plus, Lubbock becomes Texas's largest "sanctuary city for the unborn."
Plus: Texas transplants Elon Musk and Joe Rogan attract yet more controversy, Ted Cruz gets into it with ‘The Daily Show,’ and Selena Gomez explores her dark side.
The lieutenant governor is no stranger to forcing votes on controversial issues, but a new gun bill the House passed has concerned some members of his Senate caucus.
State officials didn’t make an effort to count every Texan, falling short of the census numbers needed to run up the score on California and other states.
As vaccination rollout in their country has been slow, wealthy Mexicans have spent thousands on expensive trips abroad to get inoculated.
Amid a slate of culture war offerings, lawmakers are set to discuss Medicaid expansion and accessing COVID-19 relief funds for schools.
“Ladders and walls go together like peas and carrots,” says one McAllen Border Patrol agent.
A large majority of Texas Republicans believe the unsupported claims of leaders that the 2020 election was stolen. But some in the party think “election integrity” legislation could backfire.
Michael Wood, a Marine reserve major, believes enough voters in the Fort Worth area share his views to push him into the runoff in a very crowded field.
A few of Texas's big businesses have publicly criticized efforts to make voting more difficult. But many more, fearful of Republican retribution, are trying to keep their heads down.
The Pearland native went viral this week for her poised and powerful testimony against anti-trans bills.
The state’s top elected official used to have limited sway. But Abbott has steadily seized authority from the Legislature and governing boards—a process accelerated by the pandemic.
Veteran Austin journalist Bill Minutaglio’s latest book is a crowd-pleasing account of heated political battles in Texas over the past 150 years. But does it get the big picture right?
For rural families who lack reliable, high-speed internet, Zoom-style instruction is a luxury.
Provisions of Senate Bill 7 would require some naturalized citizens to prove their right to vote.
In Houston’s Third Ward, where some residents’ homes were extensively damaged, a fight for repairs has reached a breaking point.
Many industries bear a portion of the blame for the failure of Texas’s electric grid. But one seems to be escaping strict requirements to better prepare for future storms.
You ain’t a cowboy till your stunt double’s been bucked off.
