SAN ANTONIO — Dozens of Texas Democrats remain in Washington D.C. Tuesday night as they wait out the Special Legislative Session. Lawmakers left Monday afternoon to break quorum, preventing the passage of voting changes.
Remaining members of the Texas House voted Tuesday morning to send for members who left for the nation’s capitol.
“We as Democrats, we were united. We said we are going to kill any undemocratic efforts in the state legislature, and if that meant leaving the state, we were going to do it," Democratic Texas Rep. Rafael Anchia said in a Tuesday press conference.
From Austin to Washington D.C., the fight against GOP-led voting legislation continues.
“We’re here to ask Congress to act now and to pass the For The People Act and the John Lewis Act," said Democratic Texas Rep. Elizabeth Campos.
More than 51 members have left the Lone Star State to break quorum, and Campos was one of them.
“As far as my district is concerned, 60% are seniors, so voting by mail is important," Campos said.
HB 3 outlaws drive-thru voting, bans 24-hour voting, prevents local election officials from sending unsolicited applications for requesting a mail-in ballots and creates new ID requirements.
The Texas House voted 76-4 to have the sergeant-at-arms send for the members who left.
“It’s not like they’re arresting somebody who robbed the bank and take them to jail. The purpose of this is to secure their presence and bring them back to the House chamber so the House can conduct business," Randy Erben, adjunct professor for the University of Texas School of Law, said.
Still, this may be hard to do because lawmakers are outside the State of Texas.
“That power only exists within the corporate boundaries of the state," Erben said.
Campos said they have tried to propose amendments to the bills, but have been rejected. She said Democrats have also tried to work with Republican lawmakers, but a compromise remains out of reach. She said, for that reason, they will stay until the session is over.
“This is not fun for us. We are working," Campos said.
Erben said while this may be a strong political point, Gov. Greg Abbott can call as many special sessions he wants, something he told KENS 5 he will do until the issues at hand are resolved.
Erben said Democrats are delaying the inevitable.
"They’re not going to stay in Washington forever," Erben said.