When Texas House Democrats fled the state to stall a vote on a new congressional map, Gov. Greg Abbott made the extraordinary move of petitioning the Texas Supreme Court to remove their caucus leader from office.
He urged the court to act within 48 hours of his filing.
But on Monday, the court rejected that compressed timeline, instead setting a three-week schedule for both sides to submit their briefs. Final responses are due by Sept. 4, more than two weeks after the current special legislative session is slated to conclude, the Texas Tribune reported.
Still, Abbott touted the court’s decision as a victory, posting on social media that the briefing schedule brings the “ring leader of the derelict Democrats … closer to consequences.”
The Court has combined Abbott’s lawsuit against Houston Rep. Gene Wu, chair of the House Democratic Caucus, with a similar case brought by Attorney General Ken Paxton, who seeks to oust Wu along with 12 other Democratic members.
Although Abbott and Paxton initially disagreed over which office had the legal authority to file such suits, Paxton said Monday that he now looks forward to working alongside Abbott to “hold these cowards accountable.”
On Aug. 3, dozens of House Democrats left Texas in an effort to halt the Legislature and block passage of the GOP’s proposed congressional map. The redistricting push came under pressure from President Donald Trump, who has called for adding five Republican seats to bolster the party’s slim House majority ahead of the 2026 midterms.
Democrats have denounced the mid-decade redrawing as a partisan maneuver, though they have never condemned similar gerrymandering of congressional districts in blue states that occurred over the past couple of decades.
As the minority party, their only viable tactic to derail the map is to break quorum—refusing to attend sessions so the chamber lacks the numbers needed to move legislation forward.
No Texas lawmaker has ever been ousted solely for breaking quorum, and no U.S. governor has ever successfully used the courts to remove legislators for boycotting a vote in protest of legislation, the Texas Tribune reported.
Wu’s attorneys contend that by leaving the state, he is acting in accordance with the will of his constituents, aiming to block the passage of legislation they oppose, the outlet noted.
Wu “has not died and has not been expelled from the House by the constitutionally prescribed means: a 2/3 vote of the House,” his lawyers said in a brief. “His presence in another state is not a voluntary resignation — as his opposition to this petition makes evident.”
The Texas Supreme Court is composed entirely of Republicans, with two-thirds of its members initially appointed by Governor Abbott. Among them are two justices — including the chief justice — who previously served as Abbott’s general counsel.
“They have their own independent authority, of course, but it does put them in a tough political position,” Andrew Cates, an Austin-based attorney and expert on Texas ethics law, told The Texas Tribune in an earlier interview. “They don’t want to be in the position of potentially biting the hand that initially fed them.”
The delayed schedule is likely to frustrate Republicans eager to see swift removal of the absent Democrats. Abbott has vowed to call as many special sessions as necessary until the new congressional map is passed.
If the House fails to reach a quorum by Friday, Speaker Dustin Burrows has said he will adjourn to allow the governor to convene another 30-day session.
However, with the primary filing deadline looming in December and certain election administrative deadlines, with some offices needing to file as soon as Sept. 9, there is a limited window before the redistricting fight becomes moot ahead of the 2026 midterms.