Gov. Abbott threatens Texas Dems who fled to Illinois with 'loss of their seats, felony violations'

CHICAGO -- Democratic statehouse legislators are leaving Texas on Sunday in order to break the quorum of a special legislative session in which Republican state legislators are aiming to pass a new congressional map that could create up to five new GOP seats.

A group of lawmakers who fled the state arrived at Chicago O'Hare Airport on Sunday around 7:30 p.m.

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The move comes after a marathon public hearing on the plan in the state Capitol on Friday and less than a week after state Republican legislators proposed the new maps. Republicans hold a majority in the Texas state legislature; Democrats had said they would consider all options to stop the maps from being passed, although their options for striking back have been limited.

"We're not walking out on our responsibilities; we're walking out on a rigged system that refuses to listen to the people we represent. As of today, this corrupt special session is over," state Rep. Gene Wu, who chairs the House Democratic Caucus, said in a statement.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott issued a statement on Sunday night, threatening the lawmakers who fled the state with "loss of their seats and felony violations."

"Real Texans do not run from a fight. But that's exactly what most of the Texas House Democrats just did. Rather than doing their job and voting on urgent legislation affecting the lives of all Texans, they have fled Texas to deprive the House of the quorum necessary to meet and conduct business," Abbott said, in part.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton wrote in a post on X that Democrats who left should be arrested and brought back to the state capitol.

"Democrats in the Texas House who try and run away like cowards should be found, arrested, and brought back to the Capitol immediately," he wrote. "We should use every tool at our disposal to hunt down those who think they are above the law."

Some of the Democratic legislators who fled the state appeared on Sunday evening with Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker at a press conference.

"Trump came up with a new scheme: Rig the system," Pritzker said.

While the majority of the representatives are staying in the Chicago area, small groups are also in Boston and New York.

"They are involved in an illegal act, and we are not going to stand for it," said Texas state Rep. Chris Turner.

They are trying to spread their message in defiance of President Donald Trump.

"We came here with clarity. The right thing to do to protect Texans," Wu said.

Pritzker has been a staunch supporter of Texas Democrats and has floated the possibility of getting Illinois' own congressional maps redrawn if Texas redraws its maps. Illinois' maps have been criticized by outside observers as highly partisan in favor of Democrats.

In late June, the chair of the Texas Democrats, Kendall Scudder, flew from Dallas to Oklahoma to see Pritzker, who was giving remarks at the state Democratic Party's dinner. The pair had a private meeting during that to talk about the possibility of lawmakers fleeing the state to Illinois -- and if they were to flee the state, that they would have a place they would feel safe and supported.

Since then, Pritzker and Texas Democrats have been in touch, and a small group of them traveled to Chicago in July when members of the delegation left for Illinois and California for brief meetings.

Pritzker and his team have been helping behind the scenes to help find hotels in the area for the Democrats, help their operation, and grease the wheels so things go smoothly for them as they head to Illinois.

The walkout itself cannot stop the passage of the bill, but Democrats aim to run out the clock on the 30-day special legislative session, which would mean Texas Gov. Greg Abbott would have to call another one. Texas House Democrats previously broke quorum in 2021 to try to stop an elections bill and in 2003 to try to stop a similar redistricting effort by Republicans. Republicans eventually managed to pass the bills both times.

Trump has previously said he wanted Texas legislators to draw five new Republican districts.

More than 51 legislators are leaving the state, denying the state House the two-thirds majority out of 150 legislators it needs to have a quorum. An exact number of how many of the 62 Democratic legislators from the state House were leaving was not immediately available.

Democrats who break quorum risk accruing a $500-a-day fine, according to the state House rules, and potential legal action.

Paxton, speaking with "War Room" host and former Trump adviser Steve Bannon said on Thursday, "The House rules and the Senate rules both allow for these people to be arrested if they leave ... The challenge is, if they go out of state, we lose jurisdiction, and that -- it's been a challenge in the past, but in the end, as long as the governor is willing to keep calling sessions, ultimately they have to come home."

Paxton also said he was not worried about defending the maps in court: "We've got, we've got good maps. And the legislature has the right to draw the maps they want. They're politically based, not race based. And if they're politically based, then they're defensible."

The bill containing the maps had been scheduled to be taken up on the state House floor on Monday.

ABC7 Chicago contributed to this report.