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🧵 Early voting has begun in Texas, where Trump’s redistricting war faces its greatest test. Plus, Texas voters brace for the possibility that one of their Senate candidates will exploit the powers of his office to investigate his own election if he loses. Here’s what you need to know 👇

⚠️ THREATS TO THE VOTE: Texas’ top election denier, its GOP candidate for the U.S. Senate, and its most powerful attorney are all the same person: Attorney General Ken Paxton (R).

⚠️ Paxton currently trails his Democratic opponent, state Rep. James Talarico, in recent polls. As the state’s top attorney, he has unique powers to challenge the outcome if he loses.

⚠️ Texas Democrats could win a statewide election for the first time in decades. While Paxton could refuse to accept a loss, Texas legal experts say they’re confident the courts would protect the election outcome against any bad-faith efforts to overturn it.

🚧 VOTING ROADBLOCKS: Hundreds of thousands of Texas voters were missing from county rolls because the state’s Department of Public Safety did not properly process their voter registration applications.

Texas voters can check their registration status here ⬇️ goelect.txelections.civixapps.com/ivis-mvp-ui/...

🚧 Voters in Tarrant County, a major battleground area, are preparing for the possibility of longer lines at the polls after Republican local officials slashed Election Day voting locations by 30%.

🗺️ REDISTRICTING: Republicans may not have much to show for the year they spent ramming new congressional maps through state legislatures. As voters start casting ballots, many seats the GOP hoped to flip are trending blue in spite of the White House push to rig the maps.