EL PASO, Texas – Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has filed a lawsuit to remove 13 Democratic state legislators from office amid the ongoing standoff over redrawing U.S. House districts to help President Donald Trump and the GOP maintain their majority in the 2026 midterms.
The suit, filed with the Texas Supreme Court on Aug. 8, asserts that the prolonged absence of the Democratic legislators amounts to an abandonment of their elected offices. The 13 Texas state Democrats were part of a contingent of lawmakers who left the state on Aug. 2 in an effort to deny Republicans the quorum needed to pass their proposed new congressional maps.
The maps, demanded by Trump and pushed through by Texas GOP Gov. Greg Abbott, are designed to give Republicans five new Texas seats in the U.S. House of Representatives following the November 2026 election.
Paxton targeted legislators from Texas’ most populous cities, such as Austin, Houston and Dallas.
“The rogue Democrat legislators who fled the state have abandoned their duties, leaving their seats vacant,” Paxton, who is running in 2026 for the U.S. Senate against incumbent GOP Sen. Jon Cornyn, said in a news release.
“These cowards deliberately sabotaged the constitutional process and violated the oath they swore to uphold. Their out-of-state rebellion cannot go unchecked, and the business of Texas must go on,” Paxton added.
The lawsuit concedes that the Texas Constitution gives legislators in the minority party the right to “resist legislation,” but asserts that the constitution likewise allows the majority party to compel attendance in an effort to ensure that state business is conducted.
More: Gov. Greg Abbott targets El Paso Rep. Vince Perez in Texas redistricting arrest push
“The Texas Constitution, statutes, and rules provide a broad range of tools for members of a legislative minority to be heard,” the lawsuit states. “But those tools do not include concerted effort by members of the minority to disrupt the functioning of the Legislature by abdicating their duties, including spurning the constitutional authority of the remaining members to compel their attendance. When members of the Legislature disregard arrest warrants, refuse to perform their duties, and announce that they intend to prevent the Legislature from exercising its constitutional responsibilities, they have, through words and conduct, demonstrated an intent to relinquish and abandon their offices.”
The 13 Democratic state legislators being targeted by Paxton are:
State Rep. Ron Reynolds, D-Missouri City
State Rep. James Talarico, D-Austin
State Rep. Vikki Goodwin, D-Austin
State Rep. Lulu Flores, D-Austin
State Rep. Gina Hinojosa, D-Austin
State Rep. Mihaela Plesa, D-Plano
State Rep. Suleman Lalani, D-Houston
State Rep. John Bucy III, D-Austin
State Rep. Chris Turner, D-Arlington
State Rep. Gene Wu, D-Houston
State Rep. Ana-Maria Ramos, D-Dallas
State Rep. Christina Morales, D-Houston
State Rep. Jessica Gonzalez, D-Dallas
Paxton said the 13 Democrats are being singled out because they “made incriminating public statements regarding their refusal to return, essentially confirming in their own words the very grounds for this legal action,” according to the news release.
Along with the lawsuit, Paxton is also moving to enforce arrest warrants in other states and is launching an investigation into the voting advocacy group Powered by People, which is currently getting a boost from former gubernatorial candidate Beto O’Rourke, and Texas Majority PAC for what he claims is “an illegal financial influence scheme to bribe Democrats into breaking quorum.”
O’Rourke, a former U.S. representative from El Paso, has challenged Paxton and others working to reshape congressional maps in the hopes of electing more Republicans.
“The guy impeached for bribery is going after the folks trying to stop the theft of five congressional seats,” O’Rourke wrote in a post on X Wednesday, Aug. 6. “Let’s stop these thugs before they steal our country.”
Adam Powell covers government and politics for the El Paso Times and can be reached via email at apowell@elpasotimes.com.
This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: AG Ken Paxton asks court to oust Dems who fled to block GOP redistricting
