Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton threatened to arrest state Democrats who obstruct plans to draw new congressional maps, raising the stakes for a controversial effort backed by President Donald Trump as a way of protecting the slim Republican majority in the US House of Representatives.

The 15th Congressional District is the only Republican-held seat in Texas that Democrats are targeting under the current map.

Actually derailing the redistricting effort, which was one of nearly 20 items added to the special session agenda by Gov. Greg Abbott, would be a herculean lift fraught with risk for legislative Democrats. Delaying the process with a walkout would require strong participation by most of the party's caucus, and could carry steep financial costs.

The window for Texas to directly strengthen Democrats’ national position might be opening sooner than expected.

President Trump said he thinks Republicans could flip a handful of congressional districts in Texas next year through “​​just a very simple redrawing."

Gov. Greg Abbott's decision to again have state legislators undertake a mid-cycle redistricting is far more dubious than the 2003 effort for its naked partisanship that seeks to bring the

Hakeem Jeffries, the House Democratic leader, told Texas Democrats on a call on Tuesday that the moment required everyone to take extraordinary actions.

The 15th Congressional District is the only Republican-held seat in Texas that Democrats are targeting under the current map.