Texas Democrats who left the state in a bid to block redrawn U.S. House maps have responded to Republican Governor Greg Abbott’s threat to remove them from office if they don’t return by Monday afternoon.
In a statement on Sunday, Abbott threatened to expel the Democrats from the Texas House of Representatives and said they may have committed felonies.
“This is ridiculous and absolutely unacceptable,” Texas State Representative Elizabeth Campos, a Democrat, wrote on X early Monday. “Threatening legal action against lawmakers for standing up to protect our democracy is not leadership, it’s intimidation. We have every right to fight. Fighting for fair representation is not running from a fight, it’s standing up.”
Another State Representative Vikki Goodwin, who traveled to New York, wrote on X that she was “willing to take the risk of being arrested, removed from office, or fined $500 a day.”
The Texas House Democratic Caucus also issued a four-word statement in response to Abbott’s threat: “Come and take it.”
Newsweek has contacted a spokesperson for the caucus for further comment via email.
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Why It Matters
Abbott’s threat has intensified the standoff over the new congressional maps that President Donald Trump wants before the 2026 midterm elections. The maps drawn by Texas Republicans would create five new Republican-leaning seats in Texas before next year, which would bolster the party’s chances of preserving its slim U.S. House majority.
What To Know
A vote on the Republican-backed redistricting maps had been set for Monday in the Texas House of Representatives, but it cannot proceed if the majority of Democratic members deny a quorum by not showing up.
Lawmakers can’t pass bills in the 150-member Texas House without at least two-thirds of them present. Democrats hold 62 of the seats in the majority-Republican chamber.
After at least 51 Democratic members of the Texas House left the state on Sunday,
Abbott warned that he would seek to remove them from office if they are not back when the House reconvenes on Monday afternoon, citing a non-binding 2021 legal opinion issued by Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton, which suggested a court could determine that a legislator had forfeited their office. He also suggested the lawmakers may have committed felonies by raising money to help pay for fines they’d face.
“Many absentee Democrats are soliciting funds to evade the fines they will incur under House rules,” Abbott said.
“Any Democrat who ‘solicits, accepts, or agrees to accept’ such funds to assist in the violation of legislative duties or for purposes of skipping a vote may have violated bribery laws. See TEX. PENAL CODE § 36.02.
“The same could be true for any other person who ‘offers, confers, or agrees to confer’ such funds to fleeing Democrat House members. I will use my full extradition authority to demand the return to Texas of any potential out-of-state felons.”
One group of Texas Democrats landed in Chicago on Sunday, where they were welcomed by Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, a Democrat.
Texas State Representative Gene Wu, the Texas House Democratic Caucus leader, said during a press conference in Chicago: “We will do whatever it takes. What that looks like, we don’t know.”
What People Are Saying
Texas Governor Greg Abbott, on X: “It seems to me that the only way some of the fleeing Democrats can avoid bribery charges is to not break quorum. It seems that would eliminate any potential quid pro quo connected to any payment they received to deny a quorum and skip a vote.”
He said in his statement on Sunday: “Real Texans do not run from a fight. But that’s exactly what most of the Texas House Democrats just did. Rather than doing their job and voting on urgent legislation affecting the lives of all Texans, they have fled Texas to deprive the House of the quorum necessary to meet and conduct business.”
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, on X: “I support the immediate arrest of these rogue lawmakers who’ve fled their duties. These radical Democrats are spitting in the face of every Texan they swore to represent. This is cowardice and dereliction of duty, and they should face the full force of the law without apology.”
State Representative Vikki Goodwin, on X: “I am willing to take the risk of being arrested, removed from office, or fined $500 a day. Trump’s power grab must be shown for what it is, desperation and undemocratic. His tariffs, layoffs, dismantling of federal agencies, and the big ugly bill are harming people. By trying to gain five additional Republican seats in Congress, Trump is hoping to continue implementing harmful policies after the 2026 elections. I will do everything in my power to stop the rigging of our congressional districts in Texas.”
Texas State Representative John Bucy III, on NewsNation: “Special sessions are supposed to be a tool to help Texans in an emergency, and in Texas, we had an emergency. In the middle of the night, a cabin full of eight-year-old girls was washed away, families calling 911 that night, were told by operators that help was not coming. At the end of the day, over 130 Texans lost their lives. That’s an emergency worthy of our time and our attention and our action. But instead, Greg Abbott, doing Donald Trump’s bidding, has spent this special session trying to steal five congressional seats to help Donald Trump hold on to power in the 2026 midterm. So what we’re doing is raising the alarm. We’re running into the fight, and we’re standing up for our constituents and the people of Texas as we fight Donald Trump and Greg Abbott.”
Texas State Representative Venton Jones, on X: “Texas Democratic are leaving the state to break quorum to prevent this premature redistricting republican power grab. Enough is enough! Texas Democrats are standing ten toes down for Texans.”
U.S. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, on Sunday: “We have to made clear to the people of Texas what’s taking place because it’s unacceptable, unconscionable and un-American. And as elected officials, we have that responsibility….We will make clear that we’re going to do everything possible to support the Texas legislators as they consider the best ways to push back.”
What Happens Next
Republican State House Speaker Dustin Burrows said the chamber would still meet as planned at 3 p.m. on Monday.
He wrote on X: “If a quorum is not present then, to borrow the recent talking points from some of my Democrat colleagues, all options will be on the table….”
The lack of a quorum would also delay votes on flood relief and new warning systems in the wake of last month’s catastrophic floods in Texas.
This article includes reporting from The Associated Press.
