Texas
About the state
Governor
R
Abbott
Senators
R
Cornyn
R
Cruz
U.S. House Delegation
D
13
R
23
State House
D
63
R
85
State Senate
D
13
R
18
Republicans in Texas currently have a trifecta at the state level, which has resulted in the passage of some of the most radical laws banning abortion, restricting voting rights, and limiting gun violence prevention efforts. In 2022, Democrats have the ability to build strength in the Texas House and win critical swing districts in the U.S. House.
Winning Texas
Our primary objectives in Texas are to win TX-15 and TX-34 and build Democratic power in the Texas State House.
TX House
What's at stake
Reproductive rights. The Texas GOP passed one of the country’s most restrictive abortion bans: In 2021, Republicans used their control of Texas’s Governor’s office and state legislature to pass S.B.8, described by the Texas Democratic Party as a “dystopian abortion ban”. A conservative-controlled SCOTUS refused to halt the implementation of the law that outlaws abortions after six weeks of pregnancy and authorizes everyday citizens to sue anyone who “aids or abets” an unlawful abortion— an unprecedented and unconstitutional move that is now being modeled by the GOP in other states.
Voting rights. Voting rights are under attack in Texas. Republican Governor Abbott and the Republican-controlled state house in Texas overcame Democratic standoffs in 2021 to pass controversial and far-reaching new voting restrictions following the 2020 elections. The new law, S.B.1., restricts how and when voters cast ballots and will disproportionately harm voters of color and voters with disabilities. The law is opposed by a range of voter advocacy groups and civil rights organizations in Texas on the grounds that it creates new hurdles and restrictions that will suppress voters and violates the U.S. Constitution and numerous federal laws. Democratic state representatives fled the state last summer to prevent the law from being passed, but were ultimately unsuccessful.
Child poverty. Restarting monthly Child Tax Credit payments would help Texas children living in poverty, as Texas is the state with the largest number of children in poverty in the country. President Biden's American Rescue Plan temporarily expanded and improved the Child Tax Credit to reach more working families in the form of automatic monthly payments of $250-$300 per child in the second half of 2021, which made a huge impact on the lives of children and especially parents facing increased financial burdens due to COVID-19. Though these payments have since lapsed, the need remains, and a Democratic-controlled Congress is essential to working to pass an extension of the tax credit.
What's at stake facts updated January, 2024