An Illinois circuit court on 14 Aug. threw out Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s petition to have Democratic lawmakers arrested outside the state for fleeing a special legislative session on redistricting. Judge Scott Larson ruled that Illinois courts lack jurisdiction to enforce civil “quorum warrants” issued by the Texas House, blocking efforts to seize 33 Democrats who have been meeting at a hotel near Chicago since early August. The legal setback came as the Texas Senate, meeting with a quorum, approved Senate Bill 4 by 19-2 on 12 Aug., advancing a congressional map designed to net Republicans five additional U.S. House seats. A corresponding bill has stalled in the House, where roughly 50 Democrats remain absent and only 95 of 150 members appeared for recent roll calls, short of the 100-member quorum requirement. Gov. Greg Abbott, backed by Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, has vowed to keep calling special sessions “in perpetuity” until the House can vote. Speaker Dustin Burrows plans to adjourn the current session on 15 Aug.; Abbott is expected to convene another immediately, prolonging a dispute that has also delayed a flood-relief package tied to the deadly 4 July storms in Hill Country. Democratic leaders say they are assessing whether to return after claiming victory in blocking the map during the first special session. Republicans, meanwhile, have signaled they may try to expand their target beyond the five seats already proposed if the standoff continues. The clash is reverberating nationally. California Gov. Gavin Newsom has threatened an extraordinary mid-decade redraw to offset any GOP gains, but a Politico poll released this week found 64 percent of Californians—including 61 percent of Democrats—want to retain the state’s independent redistricting commission. Court challenges are expected once Texas enacts its map, underscoring the widening partisan battle over who draws America’s political lines.