James Barragán | The Texas Tribune

A prohibition on vaccine mandates was one of Gov. Greg Abbott’s priorities for the special session, but it did not have enough support in the Legislature. Business groups rallied against the bill.

Lawmakers approved new political maps and decided how to spend COVID-19 relief money. But they didn’t pass bills about vaccine mandates or the criminal penalty for illegal voting.

Timothy Mellon is the Wyoming-based grandson of banking tycoon Andrew Mellon. He is responsible for nearly 98% of the donations to Texas’ border wall fund.

Sen. Joan Huffman, R-Houston, said the maps were drawn “race-blind.” But Democratic Sen. Beverly Powell, whose district would be turned into a majority-Republican district, said they’re an attempt to deny voters of color their voice in elections.

Dowd said Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick has focused on “culture war” issues to divide and hurt Texans.

Abbott has faced pressure from his right to prioritize property tax relief. One of his challengers in the Republican primary has slammed him for not including it earlier in the agenda, and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick called it his top priority this session.

In May, a three-justice panel of the First Court of Appeals sent the case back to Collin, Ken Paxton's home county. Prosecutors asked the full court to reconsider.

On top of redistricting, Abbott wants lawmakers to take up bills on restrictions for transgender student athletes and the allocation of billions of dollars in federal COVID-19 relief funds.

Ida, which made landfall in Louisiana as a Category 4 hurricane, on Sunday was downgraded to a tropical storm on Monday but officials warned that flooding from storm surge will continue to affect parts of the state throughout the morning.

Democrat Reps. Garnet Coleman, Armando Walle and Ana Hernandez were the latest to rejoin the House on Thursday, narrowly clinching a quorum.

The Democrats had left the state to block the passage of a Republican elections bill they say would restrict voting rights in the state.

A state district judge has granted a temporary restraining order blocking the arrest of House Democrats who have broken quorum, paving the way for those who remain outside the state to return home without threat of arrest.