Texas GOP set to pass map adding 5 House seats, triggering national redistricting fight and Democratic retaliation. Follow Newsweek's live blog.

The Texas State Capitol was cleared of visitors Tuesday evening and closed to the public after a social media threat, the Texas Department of Public Safety said.

Texas Republicans are near passing a new congressional map, sparking a response from California and igniting a new battle between Republicans and Democrats.

Former President Barack Obama said Tuesday that he supported a proposal by California Democrats to redraw congressional lines in response to a Republican-led push in Texas to gain additional US House seats but expressed unease with the broader effects of political gerrymandering.

The redistricting fight returned to the Texas House. Lawmakers wasted no time pressing each other on the details.

Texas House Democrats on Wednesday plan to offer an amendment that would block a Republican redistricting effort until the complete release of the Jeffrey Epstein files. Why it matters: The Democratic effort,

Several Texas state House Democrats plan to rip up the written agreements that allowed them to leave the chamber with a police escort on Monday and return to the House floor Tuesday night, the caucus announced.