0:25A Texas State Trooper instructs demonstrators to leave the Capitol after a verified warning, while Representative Nicole Collier intends to remain another night inside the Texas House chamber until at least Wednesday, once the Democratic legislators—who had fled the state to block GOP efforts to revise Texas’s 38 congressional districts—returned to the State Capitol in Austin, Texas, U.S., on 19 August 2025. Collier will stay because she refuses to sign a requisite form authorizing lawmakers to exit the Capitol accompanied by Department of Public Safety officers. Nuri Vallbona/Reuters
The Texas State Capitol’s halls were emptied of visitors and access restricted to the public Tuesday evening because of a social-media threat, the Department of Public Safety announced.
The disruption unfolded as rallies took place backing Democratic Representative Nicole Collier, who has stayed inside the House chamber after turning down a police escort amid an intense battle over redistricting that had prompted several Democrats to depart the state earlier this month to stall the map redraw.
The agency stated that the threatening note had appeared online earlier that day. “That post urged others to head to the Capitol and take lethal action against those keeping legislators from leaving,” the department explained.
A Texas State Trooper instructs demonstrators to exit the Capitol following a legitimate security alarm, while Representative Nicole Collier decides to stay overnight once more in the Texas House chamber until Wednesday, after Democratic legislators—who had briefly fled Texas to keep Republicans from redrawing the state’s 38 congressional districts—returned to the Texas State Capitol in Austin, Texas, on 19 Aug. 2025. Collier’s refusal to sign the form that permits members to exit the building under Department of Public Safety escort is keeping her inside. Nuri Vallbona/Reuters
The department noted that members of the public were ushered out around 6:30 p.m. local time “to protect everyone within the Texas State Capitol, and as an extra precaution.”
State investigators are working to identify whoever published the menacing note. The Capitol stayed closed to visitors for the remainder of the day.
Although the public was evacuated, several Democratic representatives stayed inside the building alongside numerous troopers.
A Texas State Trooper informs demonstrators they must depart because of a credible security notice, while Representative Nicole Collier remains overnight in the Texas House chamber through Wednesday once Democratic lawmakers—who exited the state to stop Republican efforts to adjust the state’s 38 congressional districts—made their way back to the State Capitol in Austin, Texas, on 19 August 2025. Collier refuses to sign the required permission slip for an official escort by the Department of Public Safety. Nuri Vallbona/Reuters
Hours before the building was cleared, a small group of Texas House Democrats announced they would sleep inside the Capitol alongside Collier to stand in unity with her—rejecting mandated escorts issued because they had broken quorum to prevent House Republicans from altering the congressional map in a way that would tilt five districts toward the GOP.
During a press gaggle outside the chamber Tuesday afternoon, some tore up their consent forms in front of television cameras.
Representative Penny Morales Shaw told reporters, “This process is illegitimate; it’s a misuse of authority, and I refuse to endorse it or to help establish a damaging precedent for the lawmakers who come after us.”
Representative Nicole Collier sleeps on the House floor in Austin on 18 August 2025.Representative Gene Wu/Texas House Democratic Caucus
Shaw was flanked by Representatives Rhetta Andrews Bowers, Cassandra Hernandez, and Mihaela Plesa just outside the chamber doors.
Representative Bowers told journalists, “We came back, and we’re not hiding from anyone. We never have. Let me be clear: this is an outright violation of our freedoms as Texans, as Americans, and of those chosen by the public.”
Arguing the escort is a squandering of taxpayer money, Bowers added, “We represent the citizens of Texas. Those funds belong to them. Families in the Hill Country who have lost everything in raging floods need assistance now, yet state dollars are instead financing nonstop DPS patrols.”
Some Democrats returned to the Capitol on Monday, permitting the chamber to reach a quorum, though they continued protesting the disputed redistricting push.
It is expected that the redistricting package—advanced under former President Donald Trump’s influence—will pass. The House expects floor debate on Wednesday, per an updated calendar. The legislation, freshly introduced after the first special session closed without a quorum, cleared committee on Monday.
Hernandez said more colleagues are traveling to the Capitol to bunk overnight and challenge the proposal when it reaches the chamber tomorrow, though she did not specify numbers or arrival times.
“While we’re here having this democracy sleep-over, you’ll find us on the floor tonight plotting, working together, and preparing to bring the battle tomorrow. We will not allow them to keep muting our communities or strip duly elected officials of our right to speak for the people who put us here,” she declared.
Texas House Democratic Caucus Chair Gene Wu speaks to reporters following a House session on 18 August 2025 in Austin, Texas.Brandon Bell/Getty Images
On Tuesday, Collier and Democratic Caucus Chair Gene Wu shared a video on X showing how they and Representative Vince Perez napped in the chamber on Monday night.
“We pulled two chairs together. [Wu] stretched across two. I camped on two chairs. Our colleague Vince Perez also turned two chairs into his bed,” Collier recounted in the X clip.
Wu—who had signed the waiver—wrote on his post that he joined Perez and Collier in a gesture of solidarity with the late Congressman John Lewis and his notion of “#goodtrouble.”
“We recognize this is a rigged redistricting process. Democrats aren’t walking away!” he wrote.
Collier voiced the same resolve.
“They must tap into their own resistance,” she urged supporters. “Raising your voice—finding your opposition—that’s what brings real change in America.”
Plesa noted that Collier’s phone has been ringing with messages of solidarity nationwide—including a call from former Vice President Kamala Harris.
Harris spoke with Collier on Tuesday and delivered encouragement, according to an aide.
“Remember, we are in these halls with you. You always have our backing,” Harris assured her.
In a written statement Tuesday, House Speaker Dustin Burrows said, “Representative Collier’s decision to remain and withhold her signature complies fully with House Rules.”
“I am choosing to devote my time to advancing the critical legislation the Governor has called us into session for: reforming camp safety, cutting property taxes, and abolishing the STAAR test—results Texans actually want,” he said.
Supporters applaud Representative Nicole Collier for choosing to stay inside the Texas House chamber through Wednesday, after Democratic lawmakers who had left the state to stymie GOP efforts to redistrict the state’s 38 congressional seats returned to Austin, Texas, 18 August 2025.Nuri Vallbona/Reuters
A caucus aide told ABC News that Collier is essentially stranded in the Capitol until Wednesday at the soonest—unless she fills out the form—because that marks the earliest a rules alteration could be approved by the House.
Collier said Monday that her refusal is a stance for both herself and those she represents.
“Look, I’m no criminal. I exercised my right. I’m exhausted by the government dictating when we can move and where, and this boils down to the state flexing control over citizens who assert their rights,” she said.
Collier emphasized that she holds no ill will toward the DPS officers; they were simply carrying out orders from Republican leaders. Her anger is directed at the directive itself.
“I’m weary of being pushed around, told what to do, each time I challenge those in power,” she said.
“You don’t need to escalate the damage you’re already causing. You’re going to get the outcome you want,” Representative Collier said of GOP leadership. “This is purely spiteful and needless, and I won’t accept it. It demeans me, demeans my constituents, and I won’t tolerate it anymore.”
Sourse: abcnews.go.com
