Reporting and commentary on the Legislature, campaigns, and elected officials
From John Connally to Lina Hidalgo, these leaders have made Texas the bellwether state for the nation.
The organization may have lost the right to manage the historical site, but key members still have a major influence on its future.
Like Bill Hobby, Dan Patrick has made the most of an inherently powerful position.
Senfronia Thompson and Tom Craddick are two of the longest-serving Texas legislators—and two of the most collegial . . . usually.
After what’s been deemed “the year of the botched execution,” Texas should end the practice.
Republicans in the Texas House and Senate have filed a blizzard of bills seeking to crack down on alleged voter fraud and increase state control over elections. Here’s an annotated guide.
State leaders used to invite coverage of their activity. Now the Texas Legislature is making reporting more difficult than ever.
The president’s brief trip to the Texas border city Sunday inflamed critics of his immigration policies on both the left and right.
Representative Candy Noble wants to ensure that governmental entities (i.e., the Capital City) can’t fund travel, childcare, or other support for abortion-seekers.
The Central Texas representative who is helping block Kevin McCarthy’s ascent to Speaker of the House has a long history of obstructionism.
Representative Jared Patterson’s bill is a second swing at stopping pet stores from getting animals from out-of-state for-profit breeders.
Forget Greg Abbott and Dan Patrick. Florida’s governor will be calling the shots when the Texas Legislature returns in January.
Fifteen staffers selected their favorite writing about our state that outlets other than Texas Monthly produced in 2022.
What should we do with our $27 billion windfall? We asked a variety of Texans for their brightest ideas.
Federal inspectors cited a sawmill run by members of the insular Church of Wells with multiple safety violations.
Over the last year, the pulling of a dozen books off county library shelves has split the Hill Country town.
The legislation would rewrite a portion of the education code to target programs that represent marginalized groups.
The looming disaster has thrown both Governor Abbott’s and President Biden’s failed border policies into sharp relief.
The lame-duck congressman looks to leave a mark, while his colleagues float a big border plan and do some culture warring.
Austin Democratic representative Donna Howard’s legislation seems written to try to appeal to Republicans.
Representative Jared Patterson is following a long legislative tradition of trying to troll Austin.
The plaintiff was found to lack legal standing to bring the case. That has big implications—and not just for abortion laws.
Recent history and polling tell us that voters would support a measure to stop lawmakers from restricting abortion access—which is precisely why it’ll never pass.
The former football star says his campaign for the U.S. Senate began in his home outside Dallas. Will it end there as well?
After an election marred by malfunctioning machines, long lines, and a shortage of paper ballots, Republicans are contemplating big changes in the next Legislature.
Every two years the Democrats claim they will win by turning out new voters. Every two years they fail.
Texan legislators in Washington keep their eyes on the important things. Texas Monthly rounded up the latest.
Under his new Texas bill, any community theater that hosts a performance of ‘Peter Pan’ could find itself regulated as a strip club.
The small-government conservative has proposed a bill to allow pregnant drivers to access carpool lanes.
It’s worked for the GOP elsewhere, and nothing else has worked for Democrats here.
Every two years, the party tries to kick the football—and every two years, it misses. Good grief!
Only a handful of the state’s 219 legislative and congressional races were competitive. That was by design.
Maryam Zafar, a college junior, wanted to improve the Round Rock schools she had attended. Then she saw how hard it was.
Local officials and civil rights activists worry that the attorney general could be laying the groundwork for challenging another election.
Amid a crowded field of conservative youth organizers, Run GenZ is supporting young candidates for local office across the state.
Weston Martinez can’t provide evidence for his claims of fraud in the 2020 election, but he is drawing crowds of right-wing activists across Texas.
Republicans are pursuing South Texas Latinos. Democrats are counting on the Dobbs abortion decision. Nobody knows who’s going to turn out to vote. And the polls are all over the place.
Catherine Engelbrecht and Gregg Phillips refused to disclose the name of a mystery man who supposedly helped them investigate election software company Konnech.
For the first time in fifty years, single-issue abortion voters are pro-choice. Can Texas Democrats capitalize on it?
State Republicans and local business leaders are betting big on the 38-year-old political newcomer, pouring nearly $5 million into her campaign to unseat County Judge Lina Hidalgo. Polls suggest the race is a dead heat.
If nonvoters were a political party, they'd win every election in the state.
On Monday’s ‘The View,’ and Sunday in Yankee Stadium, the senator tried again to be relatable and regular—with the usual results.
The former president’s rally in Robstown was just like all his others in Texas, but he still commands state leaders’ attention.
Progressive religious leaders are mulling their options to help women who seek abortions—and some are willing to risk lawsuits and jail time.
Where’s the passion? Where’s the intensity? And where are the robot arms, Congressman?
DPS director Steve McCraw could legally release mountains of evidence tomorrow. Instead, he is hiding behind a veil of secrecy.
Low primary-election turnout and an anemic Democratic party means statewide officials and legislators are far to the right of most Texans.
As the federal judiciary has shifted to the right, many who represent migrants are wary of bringing Operation Lone Star before the nation’s highest courts.
Texan legislators in Washington keep their eyes on the important things. Texas Monthly rounded up the latest.
In an exclusive interview with Texas Monthly, Secretary of State John Scott urges “stop the steal” activists to accept the 2020 election results.
