House Democrats unable to move freely after return to Texas capitol. So one Democrat refuses to move.

Texas Democrats who returned to the House floor Monday are being required to sign “permission slips” and seek a personal Department of Public Safety escort just to leave the chambers, NBC News correspondent Ryan Chandler tweeted Monday afternoon.

One democrat, State Rep. Nicole Collier of District 95 in Fort Worth, refused to sign the permission slip. As of press time, she is still locked in the chamber, alone, according to Chandler.

The correspondent tweeted a photo of Collier alone in the chamber, adding, “Members are really not happy with the individual DPS escorts. Say they are not free to move on their own.”

“In my heart I don’t feel compelled to sign it,” Collier told Chandler of being forced to sign the permission slip to leave.

When asked what her plan is, Collier said, “I’ll just sit here, I don’t know… I guess I’ll wait til Wednesday.”

The Democrats returned to Austin Monday to face the redistricting battle and tackle other issues in the Texas Legislature’s second special session, which started Friday. Democratic lawmakers who fled the state to break quorum said they would only return once California announced its own redrawn maps, which it did Friday.

Texas Democrats are framing their return as “phase two” of a plan to fight what they call state Republicans’ “racist gerrymandering” by building a legal case through debate and documentation in the House chamber. However, with quorum reached, Republicans are expected to pass the redrawn map with ease, enabling President Donald Trump to pick up as many as five Republican seats ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.

However, House Rep. Josey Garcia, D-San Antonio, said on Facebook Monday that she will continue her absence from the House chambers.

“I will NOT be returning to Chambers to help make Quorum for our rights to be stripped against the will of ALL Texans except those who weaponize The Constitution and Our Lord Jesus Christ to do harm to the constituents that elected us all,” Garcia said in the Monday afternoon post.

In a subsequent statement, Garcia added “I owe it to my constituents and to my fellow veterans to stand firm and hold the line.”

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This article appears in Aug 7-20, 2025.