The Texas Supreme Court, whose nine justices are all Republicans, on Friday declined to order the removal of more than 50 Democratic state representatives who staged a brief walkout last year to derail a congressional redistricting vote sought by President Donald Trump. In an unsigned per curiam opinion, the court said the political branches had already resolved the dispute themselves and that the judiciary should not step in.
The walkout, which began in July 2025, saw lawmakers travel to New York, Illinois and Massachusetts to deny the 150‑member House the 100‑member quorum required by the state constitution. The maneuver effectively shut down a special legislative session Abbott had called to address redistricting and other issues. The lawmakers returned on their own within about two weeks, and the new map — which Abbott called “the Big Beautiful Map” — was eventually passed and signed into law.
Abbott sued directly in the state’s highest civil court, arguing that the Democrats had effectively abandoned their office. He sought a declaration that their seats were vacant, which legal observers said could have given Republicans a powerful new tool to discourage future quorum breaks.
Rep. Gene Wu, the Houston Democrat who chairs the House Democratic Caucus, countered that he was not abandoning his post but exercising a right to dissent. In a statement after the ruling, Wu used combative language that recalled the spirit of the walkout.
“When Greg Abbott threatened to arrest and expel us for denying him a quorum, we told him he should ‘come and take it.’ He tried!” Wu said. “Abbott was wrong, weak, and after all his bluster, he couldn’t come and take a damn thing.”
The court opinion, written by Justice James Blacklock, acknowledged the political friction but emphasized that the Legislature had already managed the situation through measures such as fines against the absent members.
“In the end, a quorum was restored in two weeks’ time, without judicial intervention, by the interplay of political and practical forces,” Blacklock wrote. “Courts have uniformly recognized that it is not their role to resolve disputes between the other two branches that those branches can resolve for themselves.”
The opinion left the door open to future court involvement if a walkout persists and the Legislature cannot compel members to return. That possibility was immediately raised by the governor’s office.
“No elected official has the right to abandon their duties, flee the state and shut down the people’s business,” Abbott spokesman Andrew Mahaleris said. “Governor Abbott’s legal action is what brought derelict Democrats back to Texas to do their jobs and pass the Big Beautiful Map.” Mahaleris said Abbott would bring the same issue back to the court if lawmakers leave again.
The ruling comes against a backdrop of intensifying redistricting battles across the country. Both parties are racing to redraw congressional maps ahead of the 2026 midterms, with Republicans hoping to protect their slim majority and Democrats seeking to flip seats. The U.S. Supreme Court further weakened the Voting Rights Act last year, ruling that race can no longer be considered when drawing districts, a decision that has fueled new map‑drawing efforts in states including Texas.
Texas has a long history of quorum breaks. Democrats fled the state in 2003 over a redistricting bill and again in 2021 over an elections bill. In both cases, they returned and the Republican majority ultimately passed the measures into law. The Texas Supreme Court ruled in 2021 that the state constitution permits a quorum break but also allows for consequences to compel members to return.