Texas Governor Greg Abbott has filed a lawsuit to remove the state Democratic Chair after several Democrats left the state instead of staying to hold a vote on a gerrymandered map.
Abbott filed an emergency petition with the Texas Supreme Court seeking to remove state Rep. Gene Wu from office, arguing the Democratic lawmaker violated the state Constitution by fleeing the state to block a Republican redistricting plan.
Wu, who serves as chair of the Texas House Democratic Caucus, joined dozens of Democratic lawmakers in leaving Texas to prevent the state House from reaching a quorum, the minimum number of members required to conduct legislative business. The move stalled GOP efforts to redraw congressional district maps that would likely add five Republican-held seats in the U.S. House.
Abbott’s lawsuit contends that Wu’s absence amounts to a willful abandonment of office.
“Representative Wu has openly renounced these constitutional mandates by fleeing the State of Texas to break quorum, obstruct legislative proceedings, and paralyze the Texas House of Representatives,” the suit states.
The petition argues that quorum requirements impose a constitutional obligation on lawmakers to be present during legislative sessions, and that Wu’s decision to leave the state during a constitutionally mandated session “constitutes a flagrant violation of Wu’s oath and is an intentional abandonment of his constitutional duty.”
Wu did not immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday evening, but in a statement to Houston station KHOU, he pushed back forcefully against Abbott’s claims.
“Let me be unequivocal about my actions and my duty. When a governor conspires with a disgraced president to ram through a racist gerrymandered map, my constitutional duty is to not be a willing participant,” Wu said.
“Denying the governor a quorum was not an abandonment of my office; it was a fulfillment of my oath,” he added. “Unable to defend his corrupt agenda on its merits, Greg Abbott now desperately seeks to silence my dissent by removing a duly elected official from office.”
This is not the first time Texas Democrats have fled the state to block legislation. In 2021, Democratic lawmakers left for Washington, D.C., to delay a GOP-led voting restrictions bill. That move also prompted calls for legal and political retribution from Republican leaders.
The current petition before the state’s highest civil court underscores growing tension in Texas over partisan redistricting battles, with Republicans seeking to cement long-term political control and Democrats accusing the majority of racial and partisan gerrymandering.
A decision from the Texas Supreme Court on Abbott’s request is pending.
