Governor Greg Abbott took legal action following the departure of House Democrats from the state in a high stakes battle over redistricting. Abbott filed an emergency petition with the Republican-majority Texas Supreme Court seeking to remove Rep. Gene Wu (D), whom he called the “ringleader of the derelict Democrats,” from office.
The governor cited a Writ of Quo Warranto, a legal instrument that challenges a person’s right to hold public office.
More than 50 House Democrats fled to cities including Chicago, Boston, and Albany to break quorum, effectively blocking a vote on the GOP-backed congressional redistricting plan. The absent lawmakers did not appear for roll call on Monday or Tuesday in the Texas House.
“Representative Wu and the other Texas House Democrats have shown a willful refusal to return, and their absence for an indefinite period of time deprives the House of the quorum needed to meet and conduct business on behalf of Texans. Texas House Democrats abandoned their duty to Texans, and there must be consequences,” Abbott said.
In response, Rep. Wu issued a statement defending his actions, arguing that denying the governor a quorum was part of fulfilling his constitutional duty.
“This office does not belong to Greg Abbott, and it does not belong to me. It belongs to the people of House District 137, who elected me. I took an oath to the constitution, not a politician’s agenda, and I will not be the one to break that oath,” Wu said.
He continued, “When a governor conspires with a disgraced president to ram through a racist gerrymandered map, my constitutional duty is to not be a willing participant. When that governor holds disaster relief for 137 dead Texans and their families hostage, my moral duty is to sound the alarm — by any means necessary. Denying the governor a quorum was not an abandonment of my office; it was a fulfillment of my oath.”
Wu criticized Abbott’s legal move, saying, “Unable to defend his corrupt agenda on its merits, Greg Abbott now desperately seeks to silence my dissent by removing a duly-elected official from office. History will judge this moment. It will show a Governor who used the law as a weapon to silence his people, and it will show those of us who stood for a higher principle. My purpose has been clear from the start: to serve my constituents and fight for what's right, no matter the cost."
Wu finished by saying, "You will find that my commitment to the people of Texas is unbreakable.”
