On Tuesday afternoon, several Democrats ripped up the permission slips they need to leave the chamber.
AUSTIN, Texas — Texas House Democrats are staging a new kind of protest ahead of an expected vote on a proposed new congressional map on Wednesday.
State Rep. Nicole Collier (D-Fort Worth) spent the night on the House floor after refusing to sign a document requiring a police escort to leave the building. Now, a number of her colleagues are joining her.
Collier is confined to the House chamber and must remain on the floor of the Texas House of Representatives since she did not sign a permission slip to allow a DPS officer to escort her and constantly monitor and surveil her, wherever she goes.
“When I heard that the only way the Democratic members who broke quorum or denied a quorum could leave it was to sign a permission slip. To get permission to leave to be in the custody of DPS officers, I was outraged,” Collier said. “I just said that this is unacceptable. I won’t do it.”
On Tuesday afternoon, several Democrats ripped up the permission slips they need to leave the chamber.
The House of Representatives remains under a call, which means the doors are locked. It’s in response to Democrats breaking quorum to block a vote on the bill to redraw the congressional district map.
All members need written permission from the speaker to leave the chamber, and the Democrats who broke quorum had to also agree to have a DPS escort to ensure they return.
“I’m with Nicole because that was the right thing to do,” state Rep. Penny Morales Shaw said. “There is no legal basis. There is no House rule basis for what is being done. It’s illegitimate. The only power that they have is the power that I give with my consent for them to be able to do this.”
“I might have done the wrong thing on day one, when my back was against the wall, but I am correcting course,” she added.
Collier stayed on the House floor overnight, sleeping in the chamber, alongside two other lawmakers, House Democratic Caucus Chair State Rep. Gene Wu (D-Houston) and State Rep. Vince Perez (D-El Paso).
Collier was part of the group of Texas House Democrats who left the state and stayed in suburban Chicago for nearly two weeks to delay Republican plans to redraw the Texas congressional map before next year’s midterm election.
“Right now, in this moment, we have to say no. We have to push back.” Collier said. “This is my way of pushing back.”
Collier said she plans to stay on the House floor until at least Wednesday, when the chamber is set to reconvene. Republican House leaders say the monitoring is needed to ensure that the Democrats return to the House floor on Wednesday morning.
Collier, who is serving her seventh term as a state lawmaker, said she will not submit to what she called “intimidation tactics.”
“It’s important that we take a stand when we see something or disagree with our government. When the government uses its power to disadvantage other parties that are marginalized, we have to take a stand, whether you are marginalized or not,” Collier said. “We have to get comfortable with resisting. You have to be comfortable with opposing your government because that’s one of our rights, and if we don’t start doing that, we won’t have any rights to protect.”
State Rep. Rhetta Andrews Bowers (D-Rowlett) said it is a misallocation of state resources.
“While I respect the kindness and professionalism of some of these officers that have been assigned to us, this is not where their duty should lie,” Bowers said. “Law enforcement should be protecting Texans from the real dangers, not surveilling state legislators. Texans deserve better. They deserve safety, security and leaders focused on their needs, not political intimidation.”
In a writ of habeas corpus filed on Tuesday in Travis County, Collier argued she is being illegally confined in the state Capitol. The lawsuit said Chairman of the Committee on House Administration Charlie Geren told Collier she is not free to leave the Capitol, and if she does, she is subject to arrest.
In the lawsuit, Collier argues that Republican House leaders do not “have the power to compel any Texas citizen or any elected official into preemptive custody.”
To maintain a quorum to conduct business, House leaders can order the sergeant-at-arms to arrest absent lawmakers and return them to the chamber, but Collier argues they can’t detain lawmakers out of concern they may be lacking in the future or as a punishment for being absent previously.
“The plain language is clear: A member may be compelled by the sergeant-at-arms to attend a legislative session if he or she is physically absent, but no such power is conferred on the Legislature to arrest or otherwise compel a member who is currently present to stay,” her lawsuit said.
Collier has been vocal in her opposition to the proposed new congressional map, calling it discriminatory. She said the changes will weaken the voting power of minorities.
Political observers expect the changes to turn up to five Democratic districts into Republican ones. It is something Trump has pressured Texas Republicans to do to maintain control of the U.S. House in the upcoming midterm elections.
“It will be elected officials choosing their voters and not the voters choosing the candidate of their choice,” Collier said. “They are taking away the ability to elect a candidate of your choice.”
Trump aims to expand the GOP’s majority in the U.S. House, which it currently holds by a slim margin of 220-212. Republicans hold 25 of the state’s 38 congressional seats. Democrats hold 12. Adding five more GOP seats in Texas would give Republicans control of 80% of the Texas delegation in the U.S. House of Representatives.
Collier said she and her Democratic colleagues have been using the time to prepare how they plan to challenge and push back against the proposed mid-decade redistricting on Wednesday, when the full House is set to debate the proposed new congressional map.
“We’re going to continue to fight, build that legal case, and keep fighting and asking other Democratic states to join in and fight fire with fire.”
State Rep. Cassandra Hernandez (D-Farmers Branch) called it a slumber party for democracy.
“You will see that we will be working on the floor, strategizing and making sure that we bring the fight tomorrow,” Hernandez said. “We will not allow them to continue to keep silent in our communities and take away our abilities as duly elected officials to represent the people that we have been elected to represent.”
Since the standoff began, House leaders have locked the floor and gallery, cutting off public access to the chamber. Texas House Democrats set up a live stream on social media, showing Collier on the floor.
“This has been a whirlwind. I’m not used to this. This is uncharted territory,” Collier said. “When you are moved to do something, nothing is planned out. You go in the moment.”
Several of Collier’s Democratic colleagues have stopped by the House floor throughout the day to show their support for Collier’s decision.
On Tuesday, protesters stood outside the House chamber for hours as they chanted, ‘Let her out.’”
“It tells me that Texans still have grit. They have that fight in them, and they are looking for opportunities to support the work that we’re doing,” Collier said. “I’m grateful that they are here. Let’s show them that Texas spirit, and that push back with good trouble.”
The House is set to gavel in at 10 a.m. on Wednesday morning. Collier and her Democratic colleagues said they plan to stay at the Capitol until then.