Texas Democratic legislator chooses to spend the night on the House floor, in defiance of GOP's request for a law enforcement escort
Texas State Representative Nicole Collier Protests Against Police Escort
Texas state Representative Nicole Collier is spending the night on the Texas House floor in protest, refusing to comply with an around-the-clock police escort ordered by the Republican-controlled state legislature.
The order for the escort comes as part of an effort by President Donald Trump and Republican leaders in the state House and Senate to redraw the state's congressional districts mid-decade. The Texas House's quorum establishment allows them to advance new congressional maps aimed at creating five more Republican-leaning seats ahead of next year's midterm elections.
Collier, who represents a majority-minority district, believes the new maps will harm her constituents and has vowed not to go along quietly with intimidation or discrimination. She said, "I refuse to sign away my dignity as a duly elected representative just so Republicans can control my movements and monitor me with police escorts."
Collier is not alone in her protest. State Reps. Gene Wu and Vince Perez have also pledged to stay on the House floor with her overnight. Rep. Collier's community has applauded her stance, with Beto O'Rourke, a Texas Democrat, celebrating her protest on social media.
Collier's refusal to comply with the escort order has drawn considerable attention to the partisan conflict around Texas redistricting and the Republican-led efforts to enforce quorum by monitoring Democratic lawmakers' movements. Collier has filed a habeas corpus petition alleging illegal confinement, as a Republican official warned she would be subject to arrest if she left the Capitol without the escort.
Despite the majority of Democrats complying with the law enforcement escort, Collier and her fellow protesters view the requirement as intimidation and discrimination. House Speaker Dustin Burrows has put constraints on the movements of returning Texas House Democrats, limiting their ability to leave the House floor to return to their offices under the watch of a law enforcement officer. Collier cannot leave the state Capitol unless she agrees to outside supervision.
Collier's constituents sent her to Austin to protect their voices and rights, and she remains committed to that mission. Her protest is a bold stand against the efforts to silence Democratic voices and undermine the fair representation of Texas' diverse population.
The Texas effort to redraw congressional districts has set off a nationwide gerrymandering arms race, with Democrats fleeing to blue states such as Illinois, New York, and Massachusetts to avoid being forced to vote on the new maps. The partisan conflict in Texas is a reminder of the importance of fair representation and the need to protect the democratic process.
References:
- Texas Democrat refuses to sign away her dignity as a duly elected representative
- Texas Democrats stage walkout to block GOP redistricting
- Texas Democrats return to Capitol under enforced conditions
- Texas Democrats protest police escorts as redistricting efforts continue
- Texas Democrats vow to stay put as GOP redistricting efforts continue
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