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San Francisco Chronicle
42 minutes ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
First domino in national redistricting fight likely to fall with Texas GOP poised for vote on maps
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — The first domino in a growing national redistricting battle is likely to fall Wednesday as the Republican-controlled Texas legislature is expected to pass a new congressional map creating five new winnable seats for the GOP. The vote follows prodding by President Donald Trump, eager to stave off a midterm defeat that would deprive his party of control of the House of Representatives, and weeks of delays after dozens of Texas Democratic state lawmakers fled the state in protest. Some Democrats returned Monday, only to be assigned round-the-clock police escorts to ensure their attendance at Wednesday's session. Those who refused to be monitored were confined to the House floor, where they protested on a livestream Tuesday night. Furious national Democrats have vowed payback for the Texas map, with California's legislature poised to approve new maps adding more Democratic-friendly seats later this week. The map would still need to be approved by that state's voters in November. Normally, states redraw maps once a decade with new census figures. But Trump is lobbying other conservative-controlled states like Indiana and Missouri to also try to squeeze new GOP-friendly seats out of their maps as his party prepares for a difficult midterm election next year. In Texas, Democrats spent the day before the vote continuing to draw attention to the extraordinary lengths the Republicans who run the legislature were going to ensure it takes place. Democratic state Rep. Nicole Collier started it when she refused to sign what Democrats called the 'permission slip' needed to leave the House chamber, a half-page form allowing Department of Public Safety troopers to follow them. She spent Monday night and Tuesday on the House floor, where she set up a livestream while her Democratic colleagues outside had plainclothes officers following them to their offices and homes. Dallas-area Rep. Linda Garcia said she drove three hours home from Austin with an officer following her. When she went grocery shopping, he went down every aisle with her, pretending to shop, she said. As she spoke to The Associated Press by phone, two unmarked cars with officers inside were parked outside her home. 'It's a weird feeling,' she said. 'The only way to explain the entire process is: It's like I'm in a movie.' The trooper assignments, ordered by Republican House Speaker Dustin Burrows, was another escalation of a redistricting battle that has widened across the country. Trump is pushing GOP state officials to tilt the map for the 2026 midterms more in his favor to preserve the GOP's slim House majority, and Democrats nationally have rallied around efforts to retaliate. Other Democrats join the protest House Minority Leader Gene Wu, from Houston, and state Rep. Vince Perez, of El Paso, stayed overnight with Collier, who represents a minority-majority district in Fort Worth. On Tuesday, more Democrats returned to the Capitol to tear up the slips they had signed and stay on the House floor, which has a lounge and restrooms for members. Dallas-area Rep. Cassandra Garcia Hernandez called their protest a 'slumber party for democracy,' and she said Democrats were holding strategy sessions on the floor. 'We are not criminals,' Houston Rep. Penny Morales Shaw said. Collier said having officers shadow her was an attack on her dignity and an attempt to control her movements. Republican leader says Collier 'is well within her rights' Burrows brushed off Collier's protest, saying he was focused on important issues, such as providing property tax relief and responding to last month's deadly floods. His statement Tuesday morning did not mention redistricting, and his office did not immediately respond to other Democrats joining Collier. 'Rep. Collier's choice to stay and not sign the permission slip is well within her rights under the House Rules,' Burrows said. Under those rules, until Wednesday's scheduled vote, the chamber's doors are locked, and no member can leave 'without the written permission of the speaker.' To do business Wednesday, 100 of 150 House members must be present. The GOP wants 5 more seats in Texas The GOP plan is designed to send five additional Republicans from Texas to the U.S. House. Texas Democrats returned to Austin after Democrats in California launched an effort to redraw their state's districts to take five seats from Republicans. Democrats also said they were returning because they expect to challenge the new maps in court. Republicans issued civil arrest warrants to bring the Democrats back after they left the state Aug. 3, and Republican Gov. Greg Abbott asked the state Supreme Court to oust Wu and several other Democrats from office. The lawmakers also face a fine of $500 for every day they were absent. How officers shadowed Democratic lawmakers Democrats reported different levels of monitoring. Houston Rep. Armando Walle said he wasn't sure where his police escort was, but there was still a heightened police presence in the Capitol, so he felt he was being monitored closely. Some Democrats said the officers watching them were friendly. But Austin Rep. Sheryl Cole said in a social media post that when she went on her morning walk Tuesday, the officer following her lost her on the trail, got angry and threatened to arrest her. Garcia said her 9-year-old son was with her as she drove home, and each time she looked in the rearview mirror, she could see the officer close behind. He came inside a grocery store where she shopped with her son. 'I would imagine that this is the way it feels when you're potentially shoplifting and someone is assessing whether you're going to steal," she said.
Yahoo
10 hours ago
- Yahoo
California's long ballot count may be Trump's next target in the war over voting
The latest salvo in President Donald Trump's campaign against mail-in voting arrived Monday, as he announced he wants to 'lead a movement' against mail ballots and advocate instead for in-person and paper ballots, which he says are 'faster, and leaves NO DOUBT, at the end of the evening, as to who WON, and who LOST, the Election.' Trump has criticized mail-in ballots since their rapid rise in 2020, when after years of slower growth they exploded as a key innovation of the Covid election. But the logistics of counting mail-in votes helped keep the nation in suspense over who won for nearly four days after polls closed. This latest push by Trump may also have the convenience of being the latest line of attack in the redistricting wars. In California, state Democrats are attempting their own mid-decade gerrymander to counter the Trump-led push by Republicans to draw more friendly districts in Texas. And California sticks out as one of the most prominent embracers of mail-in voting — and among the slowest to count them. Overall, mail-in voting accounted for 30% of the total vote nationwide in 2024, down from its 2020 peak of 43%. However, in California, the practice made up 81% of the total vote, according to a recent report from the Election Assistance Commission. Mail-in voting overall has proved to be a challenging process for many election administrators, with hurdles including voter and ballot verification and logistical issues like opening envelopes, keeping materials secure and, in many cases, hand-counting. Essentially, all of the processes that happen in person when someone votes at a polling place — especially checking in and verifying their registration — can pile up fast when it happens by mail. But California has had some of the greatest difficulties sorting through mail votes quickly. Of the states with the highest share of mail-in voting in the 2024 election, California set a benchmark for slowest progress the morning after the election. While Democrats have achieved steady success at the statewide level in recent years, California's prolonged vote counts left the nation in suspense over which party would win control of the House of Representatives for days after the 2022 and 2024 elections. Northern California's Lake County didn't reach the halfway mark tabulating its 2024 election results until more than two weeks after election night. Responding to scrutiny, the elections supervisor complained, 'Why do we need to rush?' Following the election, state legislation was introduced requiring counties to conclude a majority of their counting process 13 days after the election. The bill passed the state Assembly with bipartisan support and is in a state Senate committee seeking funding sign-off. Meanwhile, Trump faces high legal and political hurdles to changing mail-in laws on his own at the federal level. Without new federal laws, states have wide latitude to set their own election procedures. And his recent post may just have been top of mind for him because of a prompt from Russian President Vladimir Putin. But it's also happening as California state legislators convened Monday to move forward on plans for a congressional map that, if approved by voters, would target five Republicans to lose their seats in the upcoming midterms. The effort was sparked by Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom as a response to Texas Republicans' congressional redraw seeking to fortify their majority. It may put the redistricting wars and Trump's renewed crusade on mail-in votes on a political collision course in the Golden State. This article was originally published on
Yahoo
10 hours ago
- Yahoo
Clerks from all 55 WV counties gather for election conference at Canaan Valley
DAVIS, (WBOY) — While the 2026 elections may still be months away, county clerks and election officials from across the state gathered in Tucker County this week to prepare for the polls next year. Representatives from all 55 counties were in attendance at the Canaan Valley Resort in Davis for a three-day conference hosted by West Virginia Secretary of State Kris Warner and his Elections Division staff. 'We do this as a lead-up into each election, mid-term or general election. It's my first election conference as newly elected Secretary of State, so we're very pleased with the fact that, again, all 55 counties are participating,' Warner said. WVDEP approves permit for proposed Tucker County data center The conference focused on voter registration, federal guidelines, absentee voting, election day preparation, ADA compliance for polling locations, canvassing and election night reporting. Warner said that more than 200 representatives from across the state were present this week, and that events such as this help West Virginia's municipalities stay prepared for election season and allow citizens to vote with confidence. 'It's the clerks that get the job done, and when you have all 55 counties represented, you know that it's going to be another great year, and another election where people can show up and vote, and have confidence in the system, get unofficial results on election night and ten days later have those election results certified, so it's very rewarding,' Warner said. The 2026 Primary Election in West Virginia is set for Tuesday, May 12. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Solve the daily Crossword
