Abbott asks Texas Supreme Court to remove state House Democratic Caucus chair from office

Texas GOP Gov. Greg Abbott on Tuesday filed an emergency petition to the state Supreme Court, asking it to remove state Rep. Gene Wu from office after he fled with other Democrats to block the chamber from advancing its redistricting bill. 

Wu was one of dozens of Texas House Democrats to flee the state over the weekend to deny Republicans the quorum they needed to pass its congressional map that would give them five additional pickup opportunities in the 2026 midterms.

Abbott argued in the filing that Wu, the Texas House Democratic Caucus chair, violated the state Constitution when he fled and failed to return for the vote, and that his absence amounted to abandoning office, per NBC News.

The emergency petition claimed that the quorum made attendance in the chamber “an affirmative constitutional obligation," and that Wu "openly renounced these constitutional mandates by fleeing the State of Texas to break quorum." 

“Absconding from the State during a constitutionally mandated session, not for lawful cause, but for the very purpose of subverting the Legislature’s ability to function, constitutes a flagrant violation of Wu’s oath and is an intentional abandonment of his constitutional duty,” the lawsuit states.

Wu denied allegations that he was abandoning his office in a statement obtained by Houston-based KHOU.

"Let me be unequivocal about my actions and my duty. 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," Wu said.

"Denying the governor a quorum was not an abandonment of my office; it was a fulfillment of my oath," he continued. "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."

The emergency petition comes after Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a Republican, teased that he would seek legal action from the courts over the scandal. 

Texas House Republicans are expected to try and reach a quorum again on Friday. They failed to reach the quorum on Monday and Tuesday.

Misty Severi is a news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.