Reporting and commentary on the Legislature, campaigns, and elected officials
Long-brewing tensions between Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo and District Attorney Kim Ogg have come to a head months before an election.
Enjoying that AC? Thank the mighty power of the sun and the renewable energy source keeping the grid afloat.
Experts and an eleventh-generation Texan give advice on how to ensure safety and comfort in extreme heat.
Big John’s approval rating has taken a serious blow in the month after the Uvalde shooting—driven largely by Republicans and independents.
Lawrence Wright gives us the story behind his Texas Monthly story on Madalyn Murray O’Hair.
Thursday’s decision won’t stop the border crisis or the kinds of deaths we saw on Monday.
The lovable Buc-ee’s mascot appears to be the latest victim of “hatejacking,” when an extremist group adopts a popular brand to advance its agenda.
Border crossers are perishing in trucks, in the Rio Grande, in falls from border walls, and in remote locations. And neither Greg Abbott nor Joe Biden has a serious solution.
Some clinics are resuming abortion services while waiting for the state’s trigger law to go into effect. Paxton says he’ll appeal.
Six months ago, three year-old Lina Sardar Khil disappeared. The search for her has been hampered by Islamophobia.
Gilberto Hinojosa has led the Texas Democratic Party through a decade of failure. Some Democrats think that’s long enough.
The Fifth Circuit is led by four judges who got their start in Texas politics. For these activists, overturning the right to an abortion is only the beginning.
Democrats are bracing for attacks on contraception, in vitro fertilization, and other reproductive and sexual rights.
Victories by Mayra Flores and Michelle Vallejo illustrate the complex crosscurrents at work as the Tejano vote grows and splinters.
Observers cite the party’s convention as evidence that state Republicans have gone “full MAGA.” But if anything, MAGA folks are following Texas.
Mayra Flores won a special election to serve as the first Republican in the U.S. House from the Rio Grande Valley since 1871.
John Cornyn helped wrangle other senators from both parties to advance a spate of provisions. But will the Texas Legislature follow his lead?
For decades, Terlingua was a refuge for cowboys, wanderers, and weirdos. Now it’s an increasingly popular getaway for well-heeled urbanites.
The nine-term U.S. congressman from Laredo first came to power after a bitterly contested recount that led some to call the election stolen.
In a last-ditch bid to avoid paying massive damages to the Sandy Hook families he defamed, the Infowars host sought bankruptcy protection—and failed to win it.
After ten Texans were murdered at Santa Fe High School in 2018, the Legislature passed seventeen school safety bills. They didn’t work.
Follow along with the latest sayings and doings of Louie Gohmert, the Republican congressman for Texas’s First Congressional District.
No one had a deeper understanding of Texas power—its heroes and villains, its uses and abuses—than Paul.
The governor has long struggled with crisis management, in part because he always strives to avoid taking political risks.
Pandemic relief funds provided a “once-in-a-generation opportunity” for homeless support programs. But what happens when the money dries up?
John Cornyn and Dan Patrick pulled out after Uvalde. Greg Abbott appeared by video. As Ted Cruz spoke, Beto O’Rourke led a protest.
“We need to stop the bad guys.” —Ted Cruz
Defenders of limitless guns are out of ideas but full of excuses.
State leaders have campaigned in 2022 on saving Texas children from threats real and imagined. All the while, we’ve been selling them out.
Former Texas legislator Rick Green has built a marketplace for conservative stand-up—and proselytizing.
Jessica Cisneros’s challenge from the left animated some national Democrats against the nine-term congressman.
. . . and other key Texas Lege results from the primary runoffs.
First-time candidate Rochelle Garza cruised to the attorney general nomination, while Mike Collier and Jay Kleberg eked out narrow runoff victories over all-but-unknown opponents.
Governor Abbott’s comments showed just how lost our leaders are when it comes to gun violence.
In the Republican runoff for attorney general, incumbent Ken Paxton—not to mention Donald Trump—got his wish.
Houston Republicans are going on the offensive in this week's election as a trial run for November.
As TCEQ investigates its Austin plant, the company was praised for “protecting our state’s natural resources.”
The state GOP long opposed new regulations on corporations. Then Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick launched a crusade against “woke” businesses.
Your guide to the 2022 Texas primary runoff elections.
Please clap.
Justin Berry was running a sleepy state House race against Ellen Troxclair before his policing at George Floyd protests came to the fore.
The Houston accountant has lost two statewide elections and knows the challenge of being a Texas Democrat. Why is he running a third time?
The former president played the usual hits at a rally Saturday, but rock musician Ted Nugent found new lows.
Jonathan Mitchell, who cooked up the Texas “vigilante” law that effectively made abortion illegal in the state, argues the quiet parts of the majority opinion out loud.
The Texas Railroad Commission candidate stripped down in a campaign video to get attention for her issues—and landed a spot in the May 24 Republican runoff. Which means it’s time to hear her out.
Today’s the deadline to apply for federal aid, but some experts say decreasing regulations and hiring more inspectors would be more useful.
Democratic leaders have predicted that the leaked draft decision will get Texas liberals to the polls. History provides caution.
At the sprawling North Texas community college, four professors say they were let go for speaking their minds. They’re not going quietly.
With an abortion ban looming as the Supreme Court prepares to overturn Roe, the heartbreak of trying to provide reproductive care is too much for some.
How did the former governor become a leading advocate for psychedelics?
