AUSTIN, Texas — Close, but no cigar. After weeks of an impasse, the Texas House was on the verge of a quorum Monday. They need 100 members to move on with business this second special session, and so far, 95 were in the room. That means a few Democrats who fled to Washington have returned. Late that evening, the House voted to issue a "call," which means the chamber doors have been locked and members cannot leave unless they have permission from the House speaker to do so. ​

What You Need To Know

  • With some Democrats returning from Washington, the Texas House was close to quorum on Monday

  • Texas Democrats fled the state earlier in the summer in order to prevent the passage of a sweeping, GOP-backed elections bill 

  • The return to Texas has caused something of a rift between Democrats 

  • By way of a district judge's order, Democrats can now return to Texas without fear of arrest

Tensions are rising on the House floor as some Democrats make a return after their month-long stay in the nation's capital that denied Republicans the quorum needed to pass a GOP-backed elections bill. 

Among the Democrats present on the third day of the new special session was Rep. James Talarico, D- Round Rock. In a lengthy statement, Talarico said he felt that after fleeing to Washington, the House Democrats "reinvigorated" the national conversation over voting rights. 

"While I return to the floor to work on the real issues Texans face — addressing the COVID-19 resurgence, fixing the energy grid, providing adequate healthcare, paying our retired teachers, ensuring our students are taught an accurate version of our history — I trust that the U.S. Senate will use the momentum we have given them to pass a federal voting rights act in the coming weeks," Talarico said in the statement. 

Also on the floor were three members of the El Paso delegation - Reps. Art Fierro, Mary Gonzalez and Joe Moody, who was stripped of his speaker pro tem position in retaliation for fleeing to Washington. 

​In a statement, Moody said responding to COVID was “the number one reason we’re back in Austin now.”

But other House Democrats who are still decamped in D.C. expressed their disappointment. Rep. Ana-Maria Ramos, D- Richardson, tweeted at her colleagues, saying, "you all threw us under the bus today! Why?" On Twitter, Rep. Gina Hinojosa, D-Austin, wrote, "Praying no other Democrats willingly go to Floor."

The move does make some Republicans hopeful work can start up after one special session with nothing accomplished. 

“We're happy to have them back, you know, this is the place where the work actually happens, where the debate actually ensues," Rep. Dustin Burrows, R-Lubbock, told Capital Tonight. "Very proud for them to not cave to that pressure and to be back to do the job they were elected to do." 

In addition, House Democrats can return to Texas without fear of arrest for now. Earlier in the day, a state district judge in Travis County granted a temporary restraining order blocking the arrest of any House Democrat who fled the state to break quorum. Gov. Greg Abbott had called for their arrest as soon as they returned. 

“It's inappropriate for a governor to refer to Democrats, many of whom are African American or Hispanic, as if they're, they're property or animals, or, you know, talking about corralling them or, you know, putting them in a cabin, holding them until it's time for a vote," said one of the plaintiffs in the petition Rep. Trey Martinez-Fischer, D-San Antonio.

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In a statement, Abbott’s press secretary, Renae Eze, said, "The ruling by the Travis County judge is contrary to the Texas Constitution and violates the separation of powers between the different branches of government. They say they are confident that this overstep will be overturned and Texas Democrats need to stop the charades and get back to work."  

​Burrows said he thought the suit was embarrassing and there was no standing for it.

"It was frivolous and I don't use that word lightly. It's clearly a political stunt, you know, you should never actually have to, you know, arrest or detain somebody to have to come to work," he said. "It's really just ridiculous that people who voted on the rules that allowed a procedure to compel people to come to work at the very beginning of session are now filing a lawsuit to try to stop it."

Meanwhile, Texas senators are speeding ahead with a slew of bills. A Senate committee quickly advanced its version of the sweeping elections bill Monday afternoon. It remains unclear how long it will take for the House to take that bill and other proposed laws up. 

Martinez-Fischer told Capital Tonight he will not be returning to the State Capitol this week.

“Many people didn't think we could break quorum in May, and we did. Many people didn't think we could break quorum in July, and we did. Many people didn't think we could hold out for a month, and we did. And so when it comes to this special session, we're going to put all our tools and all our options on the table. In some instances, we'll use some new tools, but we will stand up for our constituents." ​

Texas Democrats are working out what few options they have, as the overtime sessions get drawn out.