In order to try and keep control of the House of Representatives after the 2026 elections, which Republicans were almost certainly destined to lose otherwise, Donald Trump ordered Texas Republicans to redraw the congressional districts in the state with a goal of flipping five Democratic-held seats to Republicans. Texas Republicans dutifully followed Trump's orders, and produced a map that flips exactly five seats from blue to red (at least, based upon 2024 presidential results, which are in no way guaranteed to hold up in future elections for the House of Representatives).
In response, Texas Democrats in the state House fled Texas on Sunday, August 3, mostly heading to blue states such as Illinois, New York and Massachusetts where Republican state authorities cannot reach them. The reason Texas state House Democrats did this is because the Texas state constitution requires a quorum of two-thirds of the state House to be present in order for any legislative business to be conducted. With Republicans holding a majority of 88-62 in the state House, if at least 51 Democrats don't show up, then Texas Republicans are unable to pass Trump's new maps into law.
Unsurprisingly, blocking these maps indefinitely it isn't quite as easy as having 51 Democrats just not show up for work. Every Democrat who has left the state faces real personal risk. In 2021, Texas approved some pretty steep penalties for lawmakers who leave the state in order to prevent a quorum, including a $500 daily fine, civil arrest and potentially even expulsion form the chamber. Further, lawmakers are also not allowed to use their campaign accounts to pay any fines they might face. Yet further, since being in the Texas legislature is a part-time job, Democrats fleeing the state also have to not show up for their day jobs, which could prove very costly to their personal finances. If you are looking for more detail, at the bottom of their Morning Digest for August 4, The Downballot has a good summary of the situation, with lots of helpful links.
To help support Texas House Democrats in their effort to block Donald Trump's extreme and undemocratic gerrymandering, I have put together an ActBlue page where you can donate to the Texas House Democratic Campaign Committee, and also to Bowers News Media PAC.
The Texas House Democratic Campaign Committee is the state Democratic committee responsible for electing Democrats to the Texas state House. While the funds you donate to the Texas House Democratic Campaign Committee cannot be used to pay the fines that Texas state House Democrats will face for feeling the state, they can be used to help elect Texas state House Democrats in the 2026 elections. With everything else Texas House Democrats have to deal with right now–fines, leaving their day jobs, leaving their families, potential arrest, potential expulsion–I have no doubt that it is helpful to them for you to donate to the Texas House Democratic Campaign Committee. After all, they will most definitely need that money in their re-election campaigns next year.
Please, if you are able, split a donation between the Texas House Democratic Campaign Committee and Bowers News Media PAC. Support the Texas Democrats who are fighting against Donald Trump's extreme and undemocratic gerrymandering at great personal risk.