Texas Democrat Stands Ground: Nicole Collier Refuses Police Escort, Protest Continues Against Republican Redistricting Plan

Texas Democratic Representative Nicole Collier spent the night on the floor of the Texas House in protest, refusing a Republican request to be placed under the supervision of the Department of Public Safety (DPS).

Upon their return to the Capitol in Austin on Monday, following a two-week absence aimed at preventing a vote on a contentious Republican redistricting plan, House Speaker Dustin Burrows imposed restrictions on the movement of the Democrats.

Burrows stipulated that the Democrats could only leave the House floor with written permission and under the escort of law enforcement until the chamber reconvenes on Wednesday morning.

Democrats who had previously avoided attending sessions to meet the quorum for a special session to approve redrawn congressional maps will be escorted by DPS around the clock to ensure their presence when the House convenes, according to a legislative aide.

Fleeing to states with Democratic leanings—such as Illinois, New York, and Massachusetts—the Democrats faced civil arrest warrants issued by GOP officials in Texas. However, most of them complied with the law enforcement escort upon their return, showing reporters permits they received to leave the House floor and pointing out the officers accompanying them around the Capitol.

Collier refused this arrangement, remaining confined to the House floor since her return. She can only leave the floor to visit her office under the watch of a law enforcement officer, an aide said, and cannot leave the state Capitol unless she agrees to external supervision.

State Reps. Gene Wu and Vince Perez plan to stay on the House floor with Collier overnight, according to an aide. Wu shared photos detailing some of their provisions for the long hours 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. When I press that button to vote, I know these maps will harm my constituents—I won’t just go along quietly with their intimidation or their discrimination.”

Texas Democrat Beto O’Rourke celebrated Collier’s protest on Monday, posting on social media, “A true hero, refusing to submit, fighting these fascists by herself if she has to. We are with you Nicole!”

The Texas House established a quorum on Monday afternoon for the first time since most members of the Democratic minority fled the state 15 days earlier to prevent the two-thirds quorum necessary to advance new congressional maps aimed at creating five additional Republican-leaning seats before next year’s midterm elections.

Early in their boycott, Burrows had signed civil arrest warrants for those Democrats. However, DPS officers could not carry out these warrants because the Democrats were out of state.

At President Donald Trump’s urging, Texas Governor Greg Abbott and Republicans who control the state House and Senate initiated the mid-decade effort to redraw the state’s congressional districts—a departure from most states’ typical practice of redistricting once a decade, following the completion of the US Census.

This move is part of the party’s effort to maintain its narrow House majority in next year’s midterm elections, which also includes lobbying GOP officials in Indiana and Missouri to alter their maps to make Democratic-held seats more favorable for Republicans, and could result in additional GOP-leaning seats in Ohio, as required by state law to redistrict.

The Texas initiative has sparked a nationwide gerrymandering arms race. In California, Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom has vowed retribution, proposing a measure that could help Democrats gain an additional five seats in the state—but only if Texas moves forward with its redistricting plan.