Four top takeaways from the 2018 Texas midterm elections
Historic turnout, unusually tight races and a "blue wave" that didn't quite break. Full Story
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![Voters cast their ballots in midterm elections in Houston, Tuesday, Nov. 6, 2018.]()
Credit: Michael Stravato for The Texas Tribune -
Gov. Greg Abbott clinches second term as GOP wins closest statewide races in 20 years
Abbott easily bested his Democratic opponent, Lupe Valdez. Meanwhile, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, Attorney General Ken Paxton and Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller faced rare single-digit contests before eventually besting Democratic challengers. Full Story
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![Texas Governor Greg Abbott smiles before a gubernatorial debate against his Democratic challenger Lupe Valdez at the LBJ Library in Austin, Texas, on Friday, Sept. 28, 2018.]()
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With days to go, contest for attorney general shows signs of a competitive race
Attorney General Ken Paxton has run a mostly under-the-radar re-election campaign, but new ads and big donations in the final days suggest Republicans aren't taking anything for granted. Full Story
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![Houston lawyer Justin Nelson (left) and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.]()
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Ted Cruz leads Beto O’Rourke by 6 in Texas Senate race, UT/TT poll finds
Republican incumbents lead their Democratic challengers in the top four races on the general election ballot, according to the latest University of Texas/Texas Tribune Poll. Full Story
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Credit: Tom Reel/San Antonio Express-News/POOL / Emily Albracht for the Texas Tribune -
In notable shift, Attorney General Ken Paxton begins TV offensive against Democratic opponent
Ken Paxton, the GOP attorney general, has begun running a TV ad against his Democratic opponent, Justin Nelson, who has been hammering Paxton over his 2015 indictment on securities fraud charges. Full Story
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![Justin Nelson (left) is the Democratic nominee facing incumbent Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.]()
Credit: Joan Brook: Nelson/Bob Daemmrich: Paxton -
Democrat challenging Ken Paxton targets loophole used by Paxton to fund legal defense
Justin Nelson, the Democrat running against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, said his plan to "clean up Texas government" includes ending an exemption in state bribery law that Paxton has cited in accepting "gifts" toward his legal defense. Full Story
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![Democratic candidate for Texas attorney general Justin Nelson at the Texas Democratic Party convention in Fort Worth on June 22, 2018.]()
Credit: Joan Brook for The Texas Tribune -
Federal judge in Texas strikes down Indian Child Welfare Act
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton argued that the law "elevates a child's race over their best interest." Full Story
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![The federal courthouse in Fort Worth on Sept 5, 2018.]()
Credit: Leslie Boorhem-Stephenson for The Texas Tribune -
Attorney General Ken Paxton defends Texas law requiring students to stand for Pledge of Allegiance
Students can be excused from the requirement if their parents give written permission. But a lawsuit claims the law violates students' free speech rights. Full Story
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![Ken Paxton speaks at the Texas State Rifle Association General Meeting in Round Rock on Feb. 25, 2017.]()
Credit: Shelby Knowles for The Texas Tribune -
What Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh would mean for Texas
Texas aims to land several high-profile lawsuits before the high court — and hopes that, with Kavanaugh there, it will win them. Full Story
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![Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh speaks in the East Room of the White House in Washington, D.C. on July 9, 2018.]()
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Federal judge denies Texas' request to halt DACA — for now
But the judge said Texas and the other states suing could likely prove that DACA causes the states irreparable harm. Full Story
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![DACA supporters held a press conference in front of the Texas Attorney General's Office in Austin on Tuesday, Sept. 5, 2017, after the Trump administration announced the program was ending.]()
Credit: Julián Aguilar / The Texas Tribune -
Election judges can carry guns to the polls, Texas attorney general says
Election judges who work long hours in rural areas had expressed safety concerns, a Republican lawmaker told Paxton in March. Full Story
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![A Polling place in Austin, TX on March 4th, 2014.]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera -
Federal appeals court upholds Texas campus carry law
A three-judge panel of the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a prior dismissal of a lawsuit filed by three professors at the University of Texas at Austin, which aimed to block the law and allow professors to prohibit firearms in their classrooms. Full Story
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![On Nov. 10, 2015, University of Texas at Austin faculty and students protested the new campus carry law that will allow concealed handgun license holders to carry handguns into campus buildings.]()
Credit: Shelby Knowles -
At prison reform meeting, Trump praises Texas’ “very successful” DACA challenge
The Trump administration has promised to phase out the Obama-era immigration program. But the president himself has also expressed sympathy for "Dreamers." Full Story
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![U.S. President Donald Trump participates in a roundtable discussion with state leaders (including Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton) on prison reform in Bedminster, New Jersey on August 9, 2018.]()
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Following lawsuits, Texas company's plans to upload blueprints for 3D-printed guns are on hold
An Austin organization founded by a self-identified anarchist is no longer releasing information on how to use 3D printers to make guns at home in light of legal challenges from states. Full Story
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TribCast: Looming family reunification deadlines and moldy state office buildings
On this week's TribCast, Emily talks to Evan, Patrick and Emma about Texas' mold-infested state health services building, whether the feds will meet a court-ordered deadline for migrant family reunifications and why some Republican statewide officials have no incentive to debate their Democratic opponents. Full Story
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![A Texas Department of State Health Services employee found mold on their office keyboard hand rest in June 2018.]()
Credit: Obtained by The Texas Tribune -
In re-election bid, Attorney General Ken Paxton emphasizes record as Democrat seizes on indictment
Paxton was indicted nearly three years ago in a securities fraud case that is unlikely to be resolved before Election Day. His Democratic challenger, Justin Nelson, sees the race as one of "integrity vs. indictment." Full Story
![Justin Nelson (left) is the Democratic nominee facing incumbent Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.]()
Credit: Joan Brook: Nelson/Bob Daemmrich: Paxton -
Trump administration won’t defend Obamacare in case brought by Texas and other GOP states
The White House does not go as far as the states' suit, which argues that the entire law is now invalid, including a ban on charging more or refusing coverage to people with preexisting medical conditions. Full Story
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![President Donald Trump gathers with congressional Republicans in the Rose Garden of the White House after the U.S. House of Representatives approved the American Healthcare Act, which would repeal major parts of Obamacare, in Washington, D.C., on May 4, 2017.]()
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U.S. Supreme Court calls legal challenge in undocumented teenager's abortion case "moot"
Justices made the decision months after the teenager, who was in federal custody in Brownsville, terminated her pregnancy. Federal officials argued they didn't have time to appeal a lower court's ruling that cleared the way for the procedure. Full Story
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![The U.S. Supreme Court in Washington, D.C., on June 7, 2017.]()
Credit: Shelby Knowles for The Texas Tribune -
Texas sues the maker of OxyContin over the opioid epidemic
The Texas Attorney General's Office says Purdue Pharma fueled "the nation's opioid epidemic by deceptively marketing prescription painkillers," including OxyContin. Full Story
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![A pharmacist holds prescription painkiller OxyContin, 40mg pills, made by Purdue Pharma.]()
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Survivors ask Texas AG to take action against owners of Karolyi Ranch, site of alleged sexual abuse of female gymnasts
The Texas Rangers have been investigating Karolyi Ranch since January, but lawyers for survivors say action from the state attorney general is needed as well. Full Story
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![Autumn Blaney, a teenager who says she suffered sexual abuse at the hands of Larry Nassar, a former doctor for the Olympic women's gymnastics team, speaks at a press conference in Austin on May 10, 2018.]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera