The Dems who fled Texas to stop the redistribution of the GOP could be expelled, to face crimes: Abbott

A deadline at 4 p.m. having come and left, the president of Texas of the Dustin Burrows Chamber announced this afternoon that he would sign arrest warrants against the absent democratic legislators if he was authorized to do so. Shortly after, Governor Greg Abbott called the Texas Department of Public Security to arrest the “Texas House delinquent democrats”.

Democratic legislators did not return to Texas in time on Monday to approve a quorum in the middle of a fight to stop the GOP efforts to redraw the cards of the Congress of the State.

The Democratic Party of the State of Illinois published a press release shortly before the Quorum in Texas was requested, indicating that “in a daring and unified response, the Democrats of Texas House denied a quorum”. While several State Democrats appeared during an event in Illinois on Monday, a state which, according to criticism, is strongly Gerrymander, other events aimed at fighting the Redecouage efforts of Texas also took place in Albany, Boston and Chicago, according to the press release.

“Let me start by congratulating the members who have arisen,” said the president of Texas de la Chambre, Dustin Burrows, after rejection of the quorum. Meanwhile, Burrows criticized the absent democrats and said that he would not hesitate to sign civil arrest mandates if he is determined that the legislators violated the law.

Gov. Abott calls Democrats to “scandalous” demonstrations to redistribution led by GOP

The Texas State Capitol Building in Austin, Texas. (Brandon Bell / Getty Images)

“In accordance with the rules of the chamber, I am ready to recognize a motion to make a call to the House and to any other request necessary to oblige the return of the absent members,” said Burrows on Monday afternoon.

“If such a motion prevails, I will immediately sign the mandates for the civil arrest of the members who said they would not be here,” he continued. “As a speaker, I will do everything in my power to establish the quorum and advance this body with all the means available for this office.”

Earlier Monday, Governor Greg Abbott threatened to expel and potentially pursue Democratic legislators who fled Texas to prevent Republicans from moving forward with efforts to redraw the districts of the State Congress. The Senator of the Texas Gop State also tabled Bill 62 of the Senate on Monday in order to dismiss the absent legislators so as not to have appeared.

Most of the Democrats in the Texas House of Representatives, which Abbott accused potentially committed crimes, left the state on Sunday so that the room does not have enough votes for a quorum. Without quorum, legislative procedures cannot go ahead. The legislators fled while the Republicans were trying to adopt legislation establishing new districts of the Congress in the State, which, according to the Republicans, were unjustly gerrymanders in favor of Democrats and must be adjusted.

Abbott told legislators in a letter sent on Sunday that if they do not come back when the Chamber meets at 4 p.m., he “will invoke the opinion of the Attorney General of Texas N ° KP-0382 to withdraw the democrats who have disappeared from membership in the Texas Chamber”.

Texas governor Greg Abbott suggested that those who fled the state to block the Republican’s agenda could potentially face crime accusations. (Brandon Bell / Getty Images)

“In addition to abandoning their offices, these legislators may also have committed crimes,” added Abbott in his letter. “Many absent democrats are asking for funds to escape the fines they will incur under the rules of the chamber.”

Earlier Monday, Abbott said he would be considered corruption “if a legislator took money to play or refuse to perform an act in the legislative assembly”.

Subsequently, following the absence of a quorum on Monday, Abbott called the Texas Ministry of Public Security to arrest the “Texas House delinquent democrats”.

“President Dustin Burrows has just published a call from the Texas Chamber and issued mandates to force the members to return to the Chamber. To ensure compliance, I ordered Texas Department of Public Safety to locate, stop and return to the Chamber of the Chamber of the Chamber which abandoned the move.” This order will remain in force until all the members of the disappeared Democrat brought to Texas Capitol. ”

Texas Map Fight intensifies while Jeffries promises “ all options ” to stop the GOP plan

In response to the threats of Abbott, the leader of the minority of the American chamber Hakeem Jeffries, Dn.y., described the actions of the governor as “any hat, no cattle”, noting that there was “no basis for invoicing” the legislators.

“Governor Abbott makes inactive threats,” insisted Jeffries in an interview on Monday with CNN.

Representative Hakeem Jeffries speaks at a press conference at the American Capitol on February 6, 2025. (Tierney L. Cross / Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Democrats at the national level responded to the redistribution efforts of the GOP in Texas with threats to do the same in the States controlled by Democrats like New York and California.

Last week, Jeffries said at a press conference that “all options should be on the table” in the middle of the Texas redistribution battle.

Meanwhile, Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom said California should “fight fire with fire” with regard to the rediscovering of the GOP in mid-December.

New York Democratic Governor Kathy Hochul said on Monday that “the gloves are turned off”, adding that she intended to explore “each option” to redraw the cards of the Congress of his State “as soon as possible”.

Govs democratic. Kathy Hochul from New York and Gavin Newsom from California promise to retaliate against the redistribution of the GOP. (Getty Images)

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Congress cards are generally redesigned once every 10 years, following the completion of the American census, but currently Texas tries to restart their cards in the middle of the decade without any new census data, or even an order of the court. However, Abbott insisted that “there is nothing illegal” about what the Republicans are trying to do in Texas.

The new cards in Texas that President Donald Trump supports, could potentially help the Republicans in the House of American Representatives to take five seats, said the president last month. The Trump Ministry of Justice previously sent a letter in early July, alleging that certain Congress districts in Texas could be considered as Gerrymandered and in violation of the 14th amendment to the Constitution.

This is a news in development. Come back for updates.

Paul Steinhauser of Fox News Digital contributed to this report.