STATE GOVERNMENT

All 13 Senate Democrats demanded lawmakers pass legislation that raises the minimum age to purchase a firearm, requires universal background checks, among other measures.

U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz and other Republicans argue that gunmen can be stopped by locking all but one door and posting guards at schools. School officials and safety experts say that’s not realistic.

State officials provided a timeline of the massacre and have corrected crucial details amid public demands for information on how authorities handled the situation.

Uvalde’s local incident commander thought the active shooting had stopped and that the gunman had barricaded himself inside the school. Inside, the killing continued.

Abbott’s press conference follows a morning briefing from top law enforcement who admitted local police made a crucial error as the shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde continued.

The Republican governor will still be seen in prerecorded remarks at the organization’s annual meeting, which begins Friday in Houston.

U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Laredo, is leading his challenger, Jessica Cisneros, by 177 votes, while the margin is even smaller in the 15th Congressional District, where Michelle Vallejo is ahead of Ruben Ramirez for the open seat.

After the Uvalde mass shooting, GOP leaders are again pushing to boost school security. But similar legislation after a 2018 school shooting has fallen short of its goals, and experts said there’s no evidence such tactics work.

After previous mass killings during his more than seven years in office, Abbott has pledged that lawmakers and his administration would search for solutions. He made no substantive suggestions Wednesday.

As the news of the Uvalde shooting spread through schoolyards and homerooms on Wednesday, experts advise openness when talking with kids.

Paxton had been under investigation for the complaint since 2021 and had called attempts to investigate him a ploy by “leftists” in the state bar association.

U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick are also scheduled to attend the event but their offices have not commented on their attendance since the shooting unfolded in Uvalde on Tuesday. Former President Donald Trump, who is scheduled to speak, said Wednesday he still plans to attend.

O’Rourke’s disruption drew angry responses from the elected officials onstage, with Uvalde Mayor Don McLaughlin calling him a “sick son of a bitch.”

A spokesperson for Abbott said he had previously committed to the event but all campaign-related activities are postponed until further notice.

Abbott was publicly criticized by his Democratic opponent for governor. Abbot also said he wasn’t sure if he would attend the National Rifle Association’s annual meeting later this week.

U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar’s too-close-to-call runoff got most of the attention, but three other primary runoffs Tuesday carried big stakes for Democrats as they try to defend South Texas from a new GOP offensive.

Republican Dawn Buckingham and Democrat Jay Kleberg won their primary runoffs. The winner of November’s general election will replace George P. Bush as head of the Texas General Land Office.

In Texas Legislature runoffs, three of four Republican House incumbents succeed, while Democrats set their sights on retaining a South Texas Senate seat.

Collier came within 4 percentage points of unseating the incumbent in 2018. But this year, Democrats face even stronger headwinds in trying to unseat Texas Republicans.

Garza, a civil rights attorney from Brownsville, beat former Galveston Mayor Joe Jaworski during Tuesday’s primary runoff and will face the Republican nominee in the general election. A Democrat has not led the Texas attorney general’s office since 1994.

Gov. Greg Abbott and other Republican leaders signaled an openness to some gun restrictions after recent mass shootings. But in the last several years, lawmakers have eased gun laws, most notably by passing a permitless carry bill last year.

Bush’s defeat in the race for attorney general could mark the end of a four-generation political dynasty, and the end of an era of Texas politics that began when the first George Bush moved to Odessa in 1948.

Bush, who has served for seven years as the state’s land commissioner, campaigned on restoring integrity to the attorney general’s office and hit Paxton for his legal and ethical troubles.

Women’s health care providers are holding back when counseling pregnant patients about treatment options, doctors report pharmacists are hesitant to distribute some prescriptions, and OB-GYN training is diminishing for Texas medical school students.

An independent investigation released last week showed the National School Board Association planned to ask the Biden administration for National Guard troops and the military to be sent to school board meetings.

Lawyers representing families under investigation said they heard from the agency Thursday about continuing the investigations that had previously been halted by a statewide injunction.

Cornyn is the most prominent Texas Republican to criticize the attorney general’s rocky record ahead of the runoff election against George P. Bush.

The law says a former member of the Legislature cannot engage in activities that require them to register as a lobbyist if they have made a political contribution using campaign funds in the past two years.

Immigrants, people living in poverty and non-English speakers were among the most likely to be missed, yet the crucial count received lackluster promotion by Texas state government.

The pricey fights illustrate how much of the action in Texas politics has shifted back to the primary after redistricting dramatically reduced the number of competitive seats.

For the first time since the pandemic, Texas schools will again be rated based on standardized tests. But for one year only, schools that receive a D or F will get a “not rated” label.

Paxton’s backers say they’re looking past the FBI investigation into Paxton and his felony indictment because he’s a a strong conservative advocate fighting the Biden administration.

Texas Public Utility Commission Chair Peter Lake and ERCOT President Brad Jones said the power grid is prepared for record-breaking summer electricity demand.

Ashley Watt, who owns a 75,000-acre ranch in the Permian Basin, is helping bankroll a substantial TV ad buy in the final two weeks before Stogner faces the Railroad Commission’s chair, Wayne Christian, in the runoff.

The personal data was accessible to the public because of a glitch in the code of the department’s web application.

Despite an admonition from federal authorities, Land Commissioner George P. Bush’s plan still steers aid disproportionately to whiter, inland counties at less risk of natural disasters.

The state’s poorest mothers are paying hundreds of dollars out of pocket when they find baby formula because they say they can’t risk waiting for the exact brand and size container covered by Texas’ Women, Infant and Children program.

The high court also raised questions about why the state opened these investigations in the first place, noting that the child welfare agency is not bound by directives from the governor.

The winner will face a tough challenge against Republican incumbent Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick.

The clinic had stopped accepting new patients after increased political pressure.

The court did not evaluate the law on its constitutionality but will allow it to go back into effect while a legal case plays out. Texas lawmakers passed the law, saying social media platforms have an anti-conservative bias.

Incumbent Wayne Christian and oil and gas lawyer Sarah Stogner pitched voters in Paris, Texas, ahead of the May 24 election. Early voting runs May 16-20.

Join us in Austin from Sept. 22-24 for our biggest and best ideas weekend ever. The 30 speakers we’re announcing today are only a hint of what we have planned.

They were separated by a difference of 202 votes in unofficial returns, which means the election is eligible for a recount if Keys Bess petitions for one.

State leaders say expanding a social safety net for children and prosecuting abortion funders are among their priorities. “We’ll continue to do our best to make abortion not just outlawed, but unthinkable,” said state Rep. Briscoe Cain.

The state’s high property taxes have taken center stage as Texas’ real estate market explodes and drives up home values.

A few hours after saying he was being sued by the bar, Paxton’s office announced an investigation into the Texas Bar Foundation for “facilitating mass influx of illegal aliens.”

Democrats are hopeful that the looming threat of such a stunning political sea change could provide the strongest opportunity yet to energize their voters heading into an election year in which Republicans have been expected to dominate in Texas and beyond.

Abbott expanded on comments he made about how he wants to “resurrect” the 1982 U.S. Supreme Court case Plyler v. Doe, which guaranteed that public schools would educate all students regardless of citizenship status.

In this video, see what abortion rights supporters in Texas say about the impact of a likely U.S. Supreme Court decision that would overturn Roe v. Wade.