Over 51 Texas House Democrats have left the state, rendering the Texas House unable to conduct business. This action, known as a “quorum break,” is in response to a mid-decade congressional redistricting bill.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 4, 2025
CONTACT: Emily Witt (she/her), [email protected]
AUSTIN, Texas — Over 51 Texas House Democrats yesterday left the state, rendering the Texas House unable to conduct business.
This action, known as a “quorum break,” is in response to a mid-decade congressional redistricting bill, House Bill 4, being passed out of committee and scheduled for a House floor debate on Monday, August 4.
The controversial legislation, which would redraw Texas’ congressional voting maps to add five new congressional seats favoring Republican candidates, has been pushed forth during the special legislative session before the Republican-led Texas House has passed legislation on flood relief and disaster preparedness following recent devastating floods in the Texas Hill Country.
Texas Freedom Network’s Executive Director Felicia Martin (she/her/ella) issued the following response:
“This redistricting scheme is a blatant power grab by Trump and Abbott meant to steal our freedoms and silence our votes. The people have spoken across Texas, and we’ve firmly said no to this authoritarian redistricting plan. We applaud Texas House Democrats for listening to us. By breaking quorum, they’re refusing to sit idly by while Trump attempts to take over Texas and Abbott uses the special session to attack our voting rights, reproductive freedoms, and transgender neighbors.
“We find ourselves at a historic moment when all of us must ask ourselves what we’re willing to risk to protect our democracy. Democratic lawmakers have shown they will not let our future be shaped by extremists—while Republicans have shown they’re ready to bend the knee and kiss Trump’s ring.
“When lawmakers stop working for the people, it is our right as voters to fire them. Democratic lawmakers aren’t just protecting our voting power in Texas—they’re disrupting the nationwide strategy to silence people across the country who are clearly ready to give extremist politicians the boot in 2026. The Texas Freedom Network is in solidarity with Texas House Democrats, and we will keep pushing state lawmakers to focus on flood relief instead of stealing our freedoms.”
House Bill 4 was passed out of the Texas House Committee on Congressional Redistricting on Saturday, August 2, after hours of testimony on Friday from Texans and Democratic Congress members largely urging the committee to reject the new voting maps.
Before Friday’s final hearing on House Bill 4 at the Texas Capitol, hundreds attended regional hearings in Arlington and Houston, largely voicing opposition. In Arlington, about 500 Texans registered to speak, with only a few supporting redistricting efforts.
