The Texan Podcast - Daily Rundown - January 19, 2026

Starting point is 00:00:04 Howdy folks, today is Monday, January 19th, and you're listening to The Texans Daily Rundown. I'm the Texans managing editor Rob Lauchess, and here is the rundown of today's news in Texas politics. First up, with less than three months until Texas' 26 primary elections, the latest campaign finance reports have been released, increasing the sparring between embattled candidates and providing fodder to opponents. The January semi-annual reports showed that, Governor Greg Abbott easily maintained his fundraising prowess, coming in with a whopping $22.7 million in funds raised and touting $105.7 million in cash on hand. U.S. Senator John Cornyn, nearing his contentious primary against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and U.S. Congressman Wesley Hunt

Starting point is 00:00:55 to maintain his seat in the U.S. Senate, touted a total of $7 million raised through both his Cornyn Victory Committee and Cornyn Loan Star Victory Fund, and stated that his cash on hand will reflect more than $15 million. Paxton and Hunt have until the end of January to file their year-end campaign finance reports. Next, a prominent Harris County Democrat accused Governor Greg Abbott and State Senator Paul Bettencourt of overheated rhetoric and a political stunt for invoking a Texas law that could lead to state oversight of the county's elections. Former Houston City Council member Abby Kamen, who resigned to run for Harris County Attorney in the 26 Democratic primary, lambasted Abbott and Bettencourt in a series of social media posts over the

Starting point is 00:01:43 weekend. Her comments relate to a formal complaint filed by Bettencourt last year about voters listing a post office box as a residence on the county's registered voter rolls. Bettencourt's complaint resulted in a Texas Secretary of State investigation, and if the county does not fully resolve the issue, that under laws passed in 2021 and 2023, the SOS could withhold funding, order new election audits, or even assign a conservator to oversee county elections. In other news, Keller Independent School District and its board members have succeeded in having a lawsuit dismissed that called on the district to create single-member board districts. On January 15th, U.S. District Judge Reid O'Connor in the Northern District of Texas granted the motion to dismiss the lawsuit with

Starting point is 00:02:29 prejudice and ordered the plaintiffs to pay the defendant's attorney's fees. When a lawsuit is dismissed with prejudice, it cannot be filed again. The single member district lawsuit was filed in February 2025 by Keller ISD resident Claudio Vallejo, who alleged that the at-large Keller ISD board seats, quote, denied Hispanic voters a fair opportunity to elect representatives of their choosing, illegally diluting their votes. Vallejo filed the lawsuit in the midst of a controversy, over whether Keller ISD might consider detaching part of the district to form a new second independent school district. Also, enrollment for the new education system or NES schools in Houston Independent School District are down 17% in the last two years, dropping from just under

Starting point is 00:03:18 76,000 students to just over 63,000. Following the Texas Education Agency state takeover of Houston ISD in 2023, TEA appointed superintendent Mike Miles established 85 NES schools and added 45 the following school year for a total of 130. While a majority of schools were required to participate in the program, some joined voluntarily. The district website describes NES schools as, quote, Houston ISD's comprehensive plan to transform public education, starting with the schools that need it most. The district advertises that all lesson plans and materials are provided by curriculum developers for second through 10th grade teachers, and that all papers are graded and copies made by support staff. Last but not least, January is National Human Trafficking Prevention Month in the U.S., and it remains a serious issue in Texas and across the nation.

Starting point is 00:04:14 The Texan spoke with David Gamboa, chief of staff for Elijah Rising, a renowned anti-trafficking organization based in Houston to hear more about the state of trafficking in Texas and what is being done to combat this criminal enterprise. Elijah Rising began in 2012 as a prayer meeting in Houston, but it evolved into a community mobilization effort and a direct outreach effort into the commercial sex industry. Approximately 28 million people are trafficking victims worldwide, and it is one of the fastest growing illicit operations in the world. It is estimated to earn close to 234, billion dollars in profits, with 73% coming from sex trafficking. Thanks for listening. To support the Texan, please be sure to visit the texan. News and subscribe

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The Texan Podcast - Daily Rundown - January 19, 2026

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