Texas Democrats in the state legislature denied Republicans a legislative quorum on Monday by leaving the state, preventing, at least for now, plans proposed by the White House to aggressively redistrict Texas’s congressional lines in their favor.
When the legislature gaveled in at 3pm local time on Monday, Republicans fell short of a quorum by eight votes after Democrats fled to Illinois, a legislative conference in Boston, New York and elsewhere.
In an extraordinary escalation, the state’s Republican governor, Greg Abbott, said he he had ordered the Texas department of public safety to “locate, arrest and return to the House chamber any member who has abandoned their duty to Texans”.
Related: Illinois governor says Texas Democrats who left will be protected amid arrest threats
“There are consequences for dereliction of duty,” Abbott said in a statement on Monday, after the Republican-dominated House issued civil arrest warrants in an attempt to compel the return of the members who fled. “This order will remain in effect until all missing Democrat House members are accounted for and brought to the Texas Capitol.”
Enforcing Abbott’s order will be difficult, however, because Democrats who left the state are beyond the jurisdiction of Texas authorities.
Democrats hold 62 of the 150 seats in the legislature’s lower chamber, so as long as at least 51 members remain out of Austin, the Texas legislature cannot move forward with any votes, including a plan sought by Donald Trump to redraw the state’s congressional maps to give Republicans five more seats in Congress.
The Texas speaker, Representative Dustin Burrows, adjourned the house until 1pm on Tuesday after issuing a call for absent lawmakers and threatening their arrest. He cited pending legislation on flood relief and human trafficking – and not the contentious redistricting proposal before the chamber – in his call for Democrats to return.
“Instead of confronting those challenges, some of our colleagues have fled the state in their duty,” Burrows said. “They’ve left the state, abandoned their posts and turned their backs on the constituents they swore to represent. They’ve shirked their responsibilities under the direction and pressure of out-of-state politicians and activists who don’t know the first thing about what’s right for Texas.”
Democrats pushed back forcefully, accusing Abbott of calling a special session at Trump’s behest rather than prioritizing disaster relief in the aftermath of the catastrophic floods that killed 135 people in central Texas last month.
“I never thought as a Texan, as an elected member of the Texas House of Representatives, and now as an elected member from Texas to the United States House of Representatives, that I would see the governor of the proud state of Texas bend a knee to a felon from New York,” Texas congresswoman Julie Johnson taunted Abbott during a press conference in Illinois. “Never thought I’d see the day, but here we are.”
Johnson, whose district would be radically reshaped if Texas Republicans succeed, spoke alongside members of the Illinois congressional delegation as well as several of the state representatives who left Texas on Sunday.
“Texas House Democrats know how to fight,” said Texas state representative Jessica González. “Our sleeves are rolled up, and we’re ready to take this fight wherever it’s going to take us, because our communities, our state and our nation is definitely worth fighting for.”
Texas attorney general Ken Paxton, who fled his own impeachment hearings and refused a court order to release his travel records after speaking at the rally in Washington that preceded the January 6 insurrection, has described wayward Democratic legislators as “cowards”.
Speaker Burrows said the house would not sit quietly. “While you obstruct the work of the people, the people of Texas are watching and so is the nation, and if you choose to continue down this road, you should know there will be consequences.”
The Texas House Democratic Caucus said in response: “Come and take it.”
Related: Texas Democrats leave state to prevent vote on redrawing congressional map
“We are not fighting for the Democratic party,” state representative James Talarico said in a video message recorded at an airport. “We are fighting for the democratic process, and the stakes could not be higher. We have to take a stand.”
Most of the Democratic caucus absconded to Chicago, a city with a Democratic mayor and city council in a state with a Democratic governor and legislature.
Illinois governor JB Pritzker, who owns the Chicago Hyatt hotel, announced on Monday he would provide free rooms to the Texas Democrats for as long as they are out of state.
A special session of the Texas legislature lasts for 30 days, but Abbott can renew the call for a special session at will. Under new rules the Texas house adopted in 2021, each lawmaker will be fined $500 a day for each day they abscond from the state.
Democratic-led states have vowed to respond in kind if Texas moves ahead with its plans.
Earlier on Monday, New York governor Kathy Hochul said that she was exploring “every option” to redraw state congressional lines.
“I’m tired [of] fighting this fight with my hand tied behind my back,” Hochul said at a news conference with six Texas Democrats who fled to her state.
“We are at war,” she added. “And that’s why the gloves are off – and I say bring it on.”
