With an ambitious agenda before them, Texas lawmakers kicked off the first of what could be several special sessions.

Podcast host Joe Rogan encouraged Texas State Rep. James Talarico to run for president for on his show on Friday for being “actually a good person."

House Democrats are actively preparing for political trench warfare against the GOP in next year’s midterm battle, with talks taking shape behind the scenes to mount a counterattack against President Donald Trump’s aggressive play in Texas that aims to cement GOP control of Washington for the rest of his second term.

President Donald Trump said he believes Texas can squeeze out five more Republican seats in the U.S. House to shore up the GOP majority ahead of the midterms.

Texas Democrats showed up Monday for a special session but left open the possibility of walking out as a means to derail an unusual summer redrawing of U.S. House maps that would help protect Republicans' slim majority in the 2026 elections.

The prospect of Eric Flores’ candidacy has excited Republicans in Texas and Washington, due in part to his military and law enforcement credentials.

James Talarico, a Texas state rep. and seminary student, is gaining fans in a party desperate for new leaders.

The Texas GOP knows the risk. In the 2010s, the Republican-controlled Legislature drew political lines that helped pad the GOP’s House majority. That lasted until 2018, when a backlash against Trump in his first term led Democrats to flip two seats in Texas that Republicans had thought safe.