Democratic Texas lawmaker spent night on state House floor after refusing GOP demand for law enforcement escort

Source: CNN Politics

Updated Aug 19, 2025, 7:43 AM ET
PUBLISHED Aug 19, 2025, 12:53 AM ET


Democratic Texas state Rep. Nicole Collier spent the night on the Texas House floor in protest after refusing a Republican demand to be placed under the watch of the state Department of Public Safety. When Texas House Democrats returned to the Capitol in Austin on Monday, after having fled the state earlier this month in order to prevent a vote on a controversial Republican redistricting plan, House Speaker Dustin Burrows put constraints on their movements.

Burrows announced that the Democrats could only leave the House floor if they received written permission and agreed to be under law enforcement escort until the chamber reconvenes on Wednesday morning. The Democrats who skipped out on previous attempts to meet quorum for a special session to approve the redrawn congressional maps will have an around-the-clock DPS escort to ensure their presence when the House convenes Wednesday, a legislative aide told CNN.

Democrats had fled to blue states — including Illinois, New York and Massachusetts — as they faced civil arrest warrants pushed by GOP officials in Texas to force them back into the House chamber. The majority of the Democrats complied with the law enforcement escort, showing reporters what they called “permission slips” they received to leave the House floor and pointing to the officers escorting them around the Capitol. But Collier refused to enter into that agreement and has been confined to the House floor since returning.

She can only leave the floor to return to her office under the watch of a law enforcement officer, an aide said, and cannot leave the state Capitol unless she agrees to outside supervision. State Reps. Gene Wu and Vince Perez plan to stay on the House floor with her overnight, the aide said. Wu posted a photo on X detailing some of their snacks for the long stretch ahead - dried peaches, freeze dried grapes, popcorn and ramen. “My constituents sent me to Austin to protect their voices and rights,” said Collier. “I refuse to sign away my dignity as a duly elected representative just so Republicans can control my movements and monitor me with police escorts. My community is majority-minority, and they expect me to stand up for their representation.

Read more: https://www.cnn.com/2025/08/19/politics/nicole-collier-confined-texas-state-capitol-house-redistricting

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