Democratic Texas state Rep. Nicole Collier spent the night on the Texas House floor in protest after refusing a Republican demand to be placed under the watch of the state Department of Public Safety.

State Rep. Nicole Collier said she will remain locked in the Austin statehouse chamber, now outfitted with a mattress and snacks, until the House reconvenes Wednesday morning.

Texas Republicans mandated that Democratic lawmakers not be allowed to leave the state house without a permission slip and a police escort.

Former Texas Democratic Rep. Beto O’Rourke is the preferred candidate among Democratic voters in the state’s 2026 Senate race, according to recent polling — despite having lost three major races within a span of four years.

The effort is intended to help the G.O.P. win five more U.S. House seats in the midterm elections. Other states, red and blue, are likely to redraw their own maps.

More than 50 Texas Democratic lawmakers who fled their state two weeks ago in protest of their Republican colleagues’ aggressive redistricting plans have returned, restoring quorum and allowing the GO

Lawmakers are beginning to frame their ability to prevent new maps from passing during one special legislative session as a victory. But Republicans are poised to call another.