Following Texas Democratic lawmakers’ return on Monday, President Donald Trump urged the state legislature to move quickly to pass a highly controversial redistricting bill "ASAP."

Texas Democrats have ended a two-week walkout that stalled efforts to redraw congressional districts as part of a national partisan brawl over President Donald Trump's desire to reshape U.S. House maps to his advantage.

The Texas Legislature began a new special legislative session Friday after Gov. Greg Abbott called lawmakers back to deal with congressional redistricting and a host of other issues — laying down a new gauntlet for Democrats who fled the state nearly two weeks ago to halt a vote on a new district map.

New York Times columnist David Brooks compared Trump's Texas redistricting efforts to 'mustard gas' on democracy, criticizing both parties' gerrymandering tactics.

Abbott called a second special session after the House again failed to reach a quorum amid a Democratic walkout over a GOP-favored redistricting plan.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott called a second special legislative session on Friday, hiking pressure on Democratic lawmakers who fled the state to stymie Republican plans to redraw political maps at the behest of U.

"When we return, we will be ready to fight this map with every weapon available - from the streets to the statehouse to the courthouse," said Rep. Ramón Romero Jr., a Fort Worth Democrat who chairs the Mexican American Legislative Caucus said in a Monday statement.

The blistering Texas summer is usually a time when candidates announce their campaigns and begin raising money for the election year ahead. This Texas summer has been cooler than normal, and so has the announcement period for some of the high-profile 2026 races.