Texas State Rep. Philip Cortez was one of roughly 60 Democratic lawmakers who abandoned a special session of the legislature to prevent the passage of a voting reform bill, but more than a week after he and his colleagues flew off to Washington, D.C., he has decided to go back home and address the issue.
Cortez posted a statement online explaining that he was asked by fellow Democrats in his home state to come back and help them work on improving the bill.”I proudly stood with my Democratic colleagues and left Texas to ensure House Bill 3 would not be approved as introduced. A small working group of Democrats decided to begin active discussions here in Austin on improving HB 3 and asked that I return to establish open communication lines,” Cortez said. “I returned to Texas to try to engage in good faith dialogue about the aspects of the bill that I, and others, think are harmful.”
Cortez maintained that what the other Democrats are doing in the nation’s capital is worthwhile, stating that he and his colleagues “need to fight this battle on parallel tracks in Texas and Washington D.C. with one goal in mind: full and open access to voting for all Texans.”
Abhi Rahmen, a spokesperson for the group still in D.C., told Fox News that no more members are planning to go back to Texas.
