Kay Bailey Hutchison is an American attorney, television correspondent, politician, diplomat, and was the 22nd United States Permanent Representative to NATO from 2017 until 2021. A member of the Republican Party, she was a United States Senator from Texas from 1993 to 2013.
Dan Goeb Patrick is an American radio talk show host, television broadcaster, and politician. He has been serving as the 42nd lieutenant governor of Texas since January 2015, under Governor Greg Abbott.
Rodney Glenn Ellis is an American politician. He represented Texas' 13th state senate district in the Texas Senate from 1990 to 2017. The district contains portions of Harris County, including downtown Houston, and Fort Bend County. He is a member of the Democratic Party. On June 25, 2016, Ellis won the Democratic Party's nomination for Harris County Commissioners Court Precinct 1. He was elected county commissioner on November 8, 2016 and sworn into office on January 1, 2017.
Leticia Rosa Magdalena Aguilar Van de Putte (née San Miguel; born December 6, 1954) is an American politician from San Antonio, Texas. She represented the 26th District in the Texas Senate from 1999–2015. From 1991 to 1999, Van de Putte was a member of the Texas House of Representatives. In 2014, she was the Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor but lost the general election, 58-39 percent, to her Republican senatorial colleague, Dan Patrick of Houston. Following that defeat, she then resigned from the Texas Senate to run for mayor of San Antonio, which she narrowly lost to Ivy Taylor, 52-48 percent.
Melissa Meisgeier Noriega is a former member of the Houston City Council in Houston, Texas, having held At-Large Position 3. Noriega is an educator and civic leader in Houston and Harris County, Texas, as well as a former member of the Texas House of Representatives. She currently is part of the leadership team at BakerRipley, a community development non-profit.
Senfronia Calpernia Thompson is a state legislator in Texas. A Democrat, she has been a member of the Texas House of Representatives since 1972 representing the 141st District. She is the former dean of women Legislators in Texas. She has been elected to 25 terms in office. Thompson also advises the United Negro College Fund in Texas.
Maria Nicole Chappelle-Nadal is an American politician who served in the Missouri House of Representatives from the 86th district from 2019 to 2021. A Democrat from University City, Missouri, she represented district 14 in the Missouri Senate from 2011 to 2019. She previously served in the Missouri House of Representatives from district 72, a position which she held from 2005 to 2011. In 2010, Chappelle-Nadal was elected to the Missouri Senate to succeed fellow Democrat Rita Heard Days of St. Louis.
Jarvis Diallo Johnson is an American politician currently serving in the Texas House of Representatives. A Democrat, he has represented the 139th district since 2016 and previously served on the Houston City Council.
A filibuster is a tactic used in the United States Senate to delay or block a vote on a measure by preventing debate on it from ending. The Senate's rules place few restrictions on debate; in general, if no other senator is speaking, a senator who seeks recognition is entitled to speak for as long as they wish. Only when debate concludes can the measure be put to a vote.
Wendy Russell Davis is an American lawyer and politician from Fort Worth, Texas. A member of the Democratic Party, Davis represented the 10th district in the Texas Senate from 2009 to 2015. She previously served on the Fort Worth City Council.
Donna Sue Campbell is an American politician and physician who is the 25th District member of the Texas Senate. On July 31, 2012, she became the first person in Texas history to defeat an incumbent Republican senator, Jeff Wentworth of San Antonio, in a primary election.
Sylvia Rodriguez Garcia is an American lawyer and politician who has been serving as the U.S. representative for Texas's 29th congressional district since 2019. Her district covers much of eastern Houston. A member of the Democratic Party, she previously represented the 6th district in the Texas Senate.
Texas House Bill 2 (HB2) is a bill within the Eighty-third Texas Legislature, first introduced into the Texas Senate as Texas Senate Bill 5 (SB5) on June 11, 2013, related to abortion rights within the state. Among provisions include banning abortions 20 weeks post-fertilization, and mandating that doctors practicing abortions must have admitting privileges at a nearby hospital.
Sarah Davis is an American politician who served as a Republican member of the Texas House of Representatives; she was first elected in the Tea Party wave of 2010. Her district, the 134th, is located in Houston and includes The Galleria, Rice University, and the Texas Medical Center. Prior to her loss to Ann Johnson in 2020, Davis was the only pro-choice Republican in the Texas House.
Sylvester Turner is an American attorney and politician who was the 62nd mayor of Houston, Texas. A member of the Democratic Party, Turner was a member of the Texas House of Representatives from 1989 until 2016. He attended the University of Houston and Harvard Law School. Turner ran for mayor of Houston in 1991, losing in the runoff election to Bob Lanier. He lost again in 2003, coming in third and thus missing the runoff.
Konni Lyn Burton is an American businesswoman who is a Republican former member of the Texas State Senate for District 10. Backed by the Tea Party movement, Burton on January 13, 2015, succeeded Wendy R. Davis of Fort Worth, who vacated the state Senate after her unsuccessful campaign as the Democratic gubernatorial nominee in the 2014 Texas gubernatorial election.
Matthew McDade Phelan is an American real estate developer and Republican member of the Texas House of Representatives for District 21, which includes most of Jefferson and all of Orange and Jasper counties in the southeast corner of the state. He has been Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives since January 2021. He has been censured by the Texas GOP.
Briscoe Cain is an American attorney and Republican member of the Texas House of Representatives for District 128.
Michelle Jane Beckley is a former Democratic member of the Texas House of Representatives from District 65. She was first elected in November 2018, defeating incumbent Republican Ron Simmons. Texas' 65th district represents parts of southern Denton County. She did not run for reelection in 2022. After a brief run for the Democratic nomination in Texas's 24th congressional district. she dropped out and instead ran for Lieutenant Governor of Texas in 2022. She was defeated by Mike Collier in the Democratic primary runoff.
The 87th Texas Legislature was a meeting of the legislative branch of the U.S. state of Texas, composed of the Texas Senate and the Texas House of Representatives. The Texas State Legislature met in Austin, Texas, from January 12, 2021, to May 31, 2021. Governor Greg Abbott has announced three special legislative sessions during summer 2021.
