Attorney General Ken Paxton on Friday asked the Texas Supreme Court to declare the seats of 13 members vacant House Democrats who fled to other states to block President Donald Trump's proposed redistricting, making good on a threat he made earlier in the week.

State House Speaker Dustin Burrows had set a 1 p.m. Friday deadline for dozens of absent Democratic lawmakers to voluntarily return, but it quickly became clear that the House fell short of the required quorum.

Once again, the lack of a quorum in the Texas House of Representatives prevented the vote from moving forward on the first draft of the electoral map that seeks to benefit Republicans in the 2026 elections, when the United States Congress is renewed.

Paxton's retaliation for the Democratic caucus' boycott of the Republicans' proposed electoral redesign to benefit his party was not long in coming after the headcount of lawmakers present.

Paxton, who filed the lawsuit with the Texas Supreme Court, called Democrats "cowards" in a statement, alleging that their absence from the Texas House of Representatives "sabotaged the constitutional process and violated the oath they swore to uphold."

The lawsuit argued that the Democrats' decision not to attend the vote demonstrates "an intent to resign and abandon their offices."

The lawsuit accuses the lawmakers of having “abandoned their duties” and of engaging in a “deliberate and concerted effort to paralyze all legislative activity.”

The members named in the lawsuit are: Democratic state Reps. Ron Reynolds; Vikki Goodwin; Gina Hinojosa; James Talarico; Lulu Flores; Mihaela Plesa; Suleman Lalani; Chris Turner; Ana-Maria Ramos; Jessica Gonzalez; John Bucy III; Christina Morales. House Democratic leader Gene Wu is also named in Paxton's lawsuit.

While the lawsuit applies to 13 Texas House seats, more than 50 Democrats have left the state to block Republican lawmakers from voting on redistricting, which could give the GOP another five U.S. House seats, expanding its slim majority in the chamber.

The Texas Constitution opens up the possibility of breaking a quorum by stating that two-thirds of each chamber must be present for official business.

However, in 2021, after Democratic lawmakers attempted a similar strategy, the state Supreme Court ruled that the legislature can also seek ways to force members of Congress back into the chamber.

That same year, a law was passed imposing daily fines of $500 on lawmakers who skip a session to break a quorum.

The group of about 50 Democratic state lawmakers in Texas maintained a boycott of the Republican-backed electoral redrawing proposal on Friday, while the state government seeks to arrest them.

The Democratic lawmakers decided to leave the territory last Sunday and remain in Democratic states to this day, such as Illinois and New York, which have promised to protect them.

The initiative promoted by President Donald Trump is unusual since it occurs outside the usual period for redrawing electoral districts every 10 years, based on population data provided by the census.

The state government, led by Republican and close Trump ally Greg Abbott, has been looking this week at different retaliation strategies against Democrats.

The state legislature issued civil arrest warrants - valid only in Texas -, the attorney general opened an investigation into a Democratic fundraising organization, and a senator said the FBI is helping to "locate" the congressmen.

Kendall Scudder, Chairman of the Texas Democratic Party, issued the following statement in response to Ken Paxton's request to remove 13 of his political opponents:

“If Texas Republicans have a problem with this constitutionally protected quorum breach, they can take it to General Sam Houston and the Founders of Texas, the authors of our Constitution.”

“Texas Democrats are exercising a long-standing, constitutionally protected right as the minority party to block extreme agendas; in this case, the manipulation of electoral districts to keep Trump in power. These legislators have taken significant risks and sacrifices to stop Trump's agenda, and despite all the threats they face, they remain steadfast, just like the rest of us. "If Ken Paxton wants a fight, we'll give it to him," Scudder said.