Republicans in the Texas House forced returning Democrats to around-the-clock surveillance by state Department of Public Safety officers to leave the floor.

After Democrats returned to the Texas statehouse, Republican leadership assigned law enforcement officers to monitor them to prevent further delays to their plan to redraw congressional voting districts to favor Republicans ahead of the election.

Democratic Texas state Rep. Nicole Collier spent the night on the Texas House floor in protest after refusing a Republican demand to be placed under the watch of the state Department of Public Safety.

Other Democratic lawmakers have joined a colleague in staying at the Texas Capitol rather than accept around-the-clock police escorts meant to prevent them from blocking a vote on a Republican plan for redrawing congressional districts.

Some Texas Republicans and Democrats were set to announce campaigns for 2026, but the fight over redistricting and two special legislative sessions put

Texas Democrats are set to return after breaking quorum to pause the vote for a new congressional map. Now, other states are preparing to work with or against Texas if the state's redistricting plans move forward.

A California legislative hearing turned into a shouting match Tuesday as a Republican lawmaker clashed with Democrats over a partisan plan to rewrite U.S. House maps to win Democrats more seats. A committee voted along party lines to advance a new congressional map in response to a Republican redistricting effort in Texas

"Voters decided to give redistricting powers to the Independent Citizens Redistricting Commission and take it away from politicians drawing their own districts. The gerrymandered maps are exactly why voters don't trust Sacramento politicians.