Dozens of Fort Bend County residents came to the Mission Bend Branch Library last week to speak out against the proposed Texas congressional redistricting maps they say would weaken minority voting power.
The town hall was organized by the office of Rep. Suleman Lalani of Fort Bend County and led by his staff, as Lalani was one of the several Democratic House members who left the state to break quorum. The town hall was held on August 6, coinciding with the 60th anniversary of President Lyndon B. Johnson signing the landmark Voting Rights Act into law.
The standoff is ongoing as dozens of Texas House Democrats remain out of the state for a second week, preventing any potential votes on the map, which has been approved by the Texas Senate. Last week, Gov. Greg Abbott and Attorney General Ken Paxton separately stepped up legal efforts to compel their return. Abbott has sharply criticized the Democrats’ actions, calling them cowardly in public statements and on social media, and has vowed to hold them accountable for what he describes as abandoning their responsibilities…