Texas GOP to revive voting bill, Democrats plot next move

AUSTIN (AP/Staff) – Texas Republicans are pressing ahead with their push for tougher election laws after Democrats’ defiant weekend walkout stopped one of the nation’s most restrictive voting measures. Republican Gov. Greg Abbott on Tuesday had still not called a special legislative session but says he intends to after Democrats blocked new voting laws from passing by walking out of the state House of Representatives. Bolstered by GOP majorities in both the House and Senate, Abbott is also weighing whether to use the extra session to take up other top conservative priorities that had failed during the session.

Republican Gov. Greg Abbott was expected to sign the bill — sponsored by Sen. Bryan Hughes of Mineola — and says he’ll call a special session to finish the job. The meltdown of the Texas bill was a rare victory for Democrats in a year that has seen more than a dozen states enact new laws tightening voting restrictions.