Ex-Con Congressman Attempts a Texas Comeback
Steve Stockman, the felonious GOP politician, wants to return to Washington with a bid for a newly gerrymandered Houston-area district.
Politics
Texas’ Top Voucher Vendor Taps Abbott Allies in Contract Bid, Program Rollout
The New York firm Odyssey is now running the state’s lucrative voucher scheme with a little help from the governor’s friends.
Why the City of Austin Wants Voters to Hike Their Property Taxes
And what Prop Q could mean for the future of local governments in Texas
‘Failures and Grift’: Gina Hinojosa Wants to Stop Greg Abbott from Making History
The five-term Austin state representative will wage an underdog campaign to deny the powerful Texas governor an unprecedented fourth term—and the chance to further entrench his “corruption.”
Inside the Rift Between Texas Dems and a Soros-Backed PAC
The Texas Majority PAC is the latest deep-pocketed initiative meant to turn Texas blue. But have its dollars just brought more discord?
How the Bathroom Bill Weaponizes Transphobia Against Public Institutions
A legal expert called the new anti-trans Texas bathroom law “the most plainly unlawful, undemocratic legislation I’ve seen in recent history.”
Party Discipline
Trumpeted one year, eschewed the next, free speech becomes a political football in Texas.
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Texas History Offers Warnings amid Rash of Faculty Firings
Lessons to learn from the politically motivated firing of a UT president in the 1940s
A Wave of School District Takeovers Could Be Coming. Some Past Interventions Ended with More Failing Schools.
Fort Worth ISD is among the districts that could join Houston in having its elected board deposed, while Beaumont and Edgewood ISDs offer a cautionary tale.
News Orgs Fight to Unseal Records in the Paxtons’ Divorce Case
The media outlets, including the Texas Observer, argue that Attorney General Ken Paxton and his wife, state Senator Angela Paxton, are elected officials subject to public scrutiny.