2003 walkout leader weighs in as 2025 redistricting showdown reignites – says the “stakes are higher now.”
HOUSTON — More than two decades after leading a dramatic walkout to block a Republican redistricting plan, former Texas House Democratic Caucus Chairman Jim Dunnam is speaking out as history repeats itself.
Dunnam was at the center of the 2003 political standoff, when more than 50 Democratic lawmakers fled to Ardmore, Oklahoma, to deny Republicans a quorum in the Texas House. Their goal then: stall a controversial mid-decade redistricting plan pushed by U.S. House Majority Leader Tom DeLay.
“We went out of state for five days on a Mother’s Day,” Dunnam recalled. “It took them a while to find us.”
Now in 2025, Texas Democrats are employing a similar tactic—this time leaving for states like Illinois, New York, and Massachusetts—to stop a new redistricting map they say is gerrymandered to add five more Republican-held congressional seats.
“If you substitute Tom DeLay for Trump, it’s the same thing,” Dunnam said. “It has strong parallels.”
Back in 2003, critics called them “chicken D’s or chicken Dems” for fleeing the state, but Dunnam says the walkout delayed the plan long enough to force concessions. Although the GOP ultimately passed its maps during a 2nd special session, the effort remains a point of pride for him.
“What was learned is that you have to stand by your principles,” he said. “It’s a worthy cause—it’s the protection of democracy.”
A copy of the arrest warrant issued for Dunnam during that standoff still hangs in his office as a reminder of the moment.
He believes the stakes in 2025 are even higher.
“He [President Trump] will demonstrate he’ll do whatever he wants,” Dunnam warned. “What they’re doing this time isn’t fleeing the state, it’s going where you need to go to protect the interests of your constituents.”
Texas Democrats say they plan to stay out of state through at least August 19, the end of the current 30-day special session. But Governor Greg Abbott has vowed to call as many special sessions as necessary to pass the redistricting bill.
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