Latest news with #TexasPolitics
Washington Post
10-07-2025
- Politics
- Washington Post
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton's wife files for divorce
The wife of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) filed for divorce Thursday, a move likely to reverberate in his campaign to unseat Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), one of the most closely watched Senate primaries in the country. Paxton's wife, state Sen. Angela Paxton, wrote Thursday on X she filed for divorce 'on biblical grounds' after 38 years of marriage. She cited unspecified 'recent discoveries,' though she said in her divorce filing Ken Paxton had committed adultery and they had not lived together for over a year, according to the Texas Tribune.
CNN
09-07-2025
- Politics
- CNN
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott orders lawmakers to consider redistricting as GOP seeks midterm advantage
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Wednesday directed lawmakers to redraw the state's congressional map as part of a special session that kicks off later this month, as the GOP seeks to retain its narrow US House majority after next year's midterm elections. Abbott added redistricting to a packed agenda for the session, which includes measures to improve early warning systems for flooding and provide relief money to people affected by the devastating flooding over the July 4th weekend in central Texas. The special session is slated to open July 21. Abbott has the sole authority to set its agenda. Democrats need a net gain of just three seats to win the House in the midterms, raising the stakes for Republicans and President Donald Trump, who could see a Democratic-controlled House block his legislative agenda and open new investigations of him in the second half of his final term. It is rare for states to undertake a mid-decade redistricting without a court order to do so. But Texas is one of two states where Republicans are pushing to change congressional districts this year in the hopes of ousting several longtime Democratic lawmakers. Some Republicans are hoping new maps in Texas could result in the GOP picking up as many as five additional seats to shore up their chances of retaining the House majority. The top Democrat in the House, Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, on Wednesday criticized Abbott's action. 'While Texans battle tragic and deadly flooding, Governor Abbott and House Republicans are plotting a mid-decade gerrymander,' Jeffries wrote on X. 'They should be modernizing emergency response — not rigging maps.' Republicans currently control 25 of the state's 38 House seats. A new GOP map in Texas is likely to shift voters from safely Republican districts into ones held by Democrats. Targets for Republicans are expected to include Democratic Reps. Henry Cuellar and Vicente Gonzalez, who represent border communities that have shifted to the right in recent years. A case now underway challenges Texas' current congressional map, drawn in 2021, as improperly diluting the power of the state's minority voters. The US Justice Department initially brought the case during the Biden administration, but Trump's Justice Department dropped its claim. Litigation from groups representing minority residents and voting rights groups continues, however. In Ohio, meanwhile, a requirement in state law is giving Republican state legislators another run at drawing new lines this year for the state's 15 congressional districts. The GOP now controls 10 of those seats. The goal would be to knock off at least two Democratic members of the House, giving the GOP a 12-3 advantage in the state's congressional delegation. The mid-decade redrawing of Ohio's congressional districts stems from a state law that requires maps approved without bipartisan support to be redrawn after four years. Both the Ohio and Texas legislatures are controlled by Republicans. Democrats recently lost an effort to add more seats in the battleground state of Wisconsin when the liberal-controlled state Supreme Court declined challenges to the state's congressional boundaries. Republicans now control six of eight US House seats in Wisconsin.
CNN
09-07-2025
- Politics
- CNN
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott orders lawmakers to consider redistricting as GOP seeks midterm advantage
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Wednesday directed lawmakers to redraw the state's congressional map as part of a special session that kicks off later this month, as the GOP seeks to retain its narrow US House majority after next year's midterm elections. Abbott added redistricting to a packed agenda for the session, which includes measures to improve early warning systems for flooding and provide relief money to people affected by the devastating flooding over the July 4th weekend in central Texas. The special session is slated to open July 21. Abbott has the sole authority to set its agenda. Democrats need a net gain of just three seats to win the House in the midterms, raising the stakes for Republicans and President Donald Trump, who could see a Democratic-controlled House block his legislative agenda and open new investigations of him in the second half of his final term. It is rare for states to undertake a mid-decade redistricting without a court order to do so. But Texas is one of two states where Republicans are pushing to change congressional districts this year in the hopes of ousting several longtime Democratic lawmakers. Some Republicans are hoping new maps in Texas could result in the GOP picking up as many as five additional seats to shore up their chances of retaining the House majority. The top Democrat in the House, Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, on Wednesday criticized Abbott's action. 'While Texans battle tragic and deadly flooding, Governor Abbott and House Republicans are plotting a mid-decade gerrymander,' Jeffries wrote on X. 'They should be modernizing emergency response — not rigging maps.' Republicans currently control 25 of the state's 38 House seats. A new GOP map in Texas is likely to shift voters from safely Republican districts into ones held by Democrats. Targets for Republicans are expected to include Democratic Reps. Henry Cuellar and Vicente Gonzalez, who represent border communities that have shifted to the right in recent years. A case now underway challenges Texas' current congressional map, drawn in 2021, as improperly diluting the power of the state's minority voters. The US Justice Department initially brought the case during the Biden administration, but Trump's Justice Department dropped its claim. Litigation from groups representing minority residents and voting rights groups continues, however. In Ohio, meanwhile, a requirement in state law is giving Republican state legislators another run at drawing new lines this year for the state's 15 congressional districts. The GOP now controls 10 of those seats. The goal would be to knock off at least two Democratic members of the House, giving the GOP a 12-3 advantage in the state's congressional delegation. The mid-decade redrawing of Ohio's congressional districts stems from a state law that requires maps approved without bipartisan support to be redrawn after four years. Both the Ohio and Texas legislatures are controlled by Republicans. Democrats recently lost an effort to add more seats in the battleground state of Wisconsin when the liberal-controlled state Supreme Court declined challenges to the state's congressional boundaries. Republicans now control six of eight US House seats in Wisconsin.
Washington Post
04-07-2025
- Politics
- Washington Post
Republicans may be cooking up a mess in Texas
Democrats last carried Texas in a presidential election 49 years ago, last elected a U.S. senator there in 1986 and have lost all statewide elections since 1994. Texas Republicans could, however, surrender their considerable advantages and lose the state's 2026 U.S. Senate election. John Cornyn, who next year will seek a fifth term, is respected by colleagues, who elected him to be Republican whip from 2013 to 2019. He is judicious: He was a Texas Supreme Court justice. He is conservative: The National Rifle Association and the National Federation of Independent Businesses give him 100 percent ratings. His AFL-CIO rating is 0 percent.
Yahoo
02-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
‘True MAGA attorney' Aaron Reitz joins race for Texas attorney general
AUSTIN (Nexstar) — After Attorney General Ken Paxton announced he would challenge incumbent Sen. John Cornyn in the Republican primary for U.S. Senate, the election to replace him is heating up. Aaron Reitz, former U.S. assistant attorney general in the Department of Justice Office of Legal Policy, said he is running for attorney general to increase cooperation between Texas and the Trump administration. 'The first two years are going to be characterized by very deep integration with the Trump administration,' Reitz said. 'President Trump … praised my record litigating on major issues with Attorney General Ken Paxton, and then he specifically called me a true MAGA attorney and a warrior for the constitution.' Reitz previously worked under Paxton, serving as a deputy attorney general before leaving for the Trump administration. He said he stood by Paxton during his 2023 impeachment trial, and defended 'lawfare and weaponization' against him. Now, he wants to take Paxton's job as the state's top lawyer. He pointed to his experience litigating conservative priorities — namely against diversity, equity and inclusion programs in public schools — in Paxton's office and will do the same as attorney general. 'We had all kinds of lawsuits … ensuring that our children were protected in schools, and that woke indoctrination was not happening in our public school system,' Reitz said. 'I have a record that shows I know and have successfully litigated, sued, appealed, and defended on those issues.' Reitz was asked about the recent lawsuit brought by the DOJ against Texas for the Texas Dream Act, which gave in-state tuition to undocumented students who met certain requirements. But Paxton's office settled the case within a few hours, and the law was struck down, with some accusing the two entities of colluding to take away the program. Working at the DOJ at the time, Reitz made it clear that he was likely involved in some capacity. 'If you saw any headline making news coming out of the Justice Department, you can guarantee that I was in some way involved with it,' Reitz said. Reitz will face two state senators in the March 2026 GOP primary — Joan Huffman, R-Houston, and Mayes Middleton, R-Galveston. Huffman has served in the Senate since 2008, and Middleton has served since 2019, along with being president of the Middleton Oil Company. Middleton's campaign website touts his work to pass the Save Women's Sports Act and a ban on COVID vaccine mandates. Huffman served as a district judge and attorney in Harris County before being elected to the Senate. 'I am the best-qualified, most-experienced candidate who understands the intricacies of every function of state government,' Huffman wrote in her campaign announcement. Reitz said that his legal record sets him apart, and that anyone who claims he is not experienced enough is making a 'loser critique.' 'I think that is the sort of low energy mentality and approach that Joan Huffman and Mayes Middleton are going to bring to this race,' Reitz said. 'When you look at my record, litigating, investigating, suing, defending and appealing on all of the major issues from the perspective of this executive branch legal role, I think my record beats theirs every single day.' Reitz discussed his record of investigating and pursuing litigation against the Biden administration. He said that if Republicans retain the White House in 2028, he would be an ally to that president. But if the Democrats win the presidency, he made it clear he would be ready to fight, even without knowing which person or policies he would be fighting against. 'If you see a changing of the guard, you're going to see what I did for my three years under Attorney General Paxton, and that is suing the federal government under Democratic control to ensure that Texas liberty is protected here at home,' Reitz said. In a GOP primary in Texas, races to the right are not uncommon. Reitz's brand as a MAGA warrior would be a continuation of Paxton's tenure as attorney general — something he proudly advertises. 'When Texans are looking to support or elect their next Texas AG, somebody who has the proven battle tested experience to be ready on day one to continue fighting the fights on behalf of Texas and all Texans — It's me,' Reitz said. 'We're going to continue to put our foot on the gas and press hard in those directions.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
