Texas Democrats on Thursday moved closer to ending a nearly two-week walkout that has blocked the GOP’s redrawing of U.S. House maps.

The Texas Senate approved new Republican-drawn congressional maps Tuesday night despite an ongoing walkout by House Democrats aimed at halting the redistricting process. Senators passed the maps in a 19-2 vote after nine Democrats left the floor in protest.

If those conditions are met, the Texas House Democratic Caucus said Democratic lawmakers will return to the Texas House.

Texas House Democratic lawmakers signaled on Thursday they are preparing to end their standoff over redistricting and return to the state.

We're prepared to bring this battle back to Texas under the right conditions and to take this fight to the courts,” said Caucus Chair Gene Wu of Houston in a statement.

Judge Scott Larson ruled that the Texas speaker and attorney general had “failed to present a legal basis for the court” to take up the issue.

An Illinois judge on Wednesday declined Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s (R) request to hold Texas Democrats who fled there in contempt. Paxton reached across state lines to seek a ruling that would effectively force the blue state to comply with efforts to arrest the lawmakers and return them to Texas to end their

Illinois law enforcement officers cannot arrest Texas House Democrats who have been staying in the northern state in protest of a congressional redistricting map, a state judge ruled Wednesday. The ruling,