Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed a lawsuit directly to the all-Republican state Supreme Court on Friday seeking to have 13 of the Democratic lawmakers immediately removed from office, or at least given a 48-hour warning that they must return or have their offices declared vacated.

Texas Democrats again defied Republican Gov. Greg Abbott and the state GOP and did not show up Friday for a vote on a controversial redistricting plan proposed by Republicans. The GOP-proposed new congressional maps that would give Republicans more seats in Congress -- potentially allowing the GOP to keep control of the U.

Texas’ redistricting standoff rose to a new level Friday as Democrats once again denied a quorum to allow the House to consider the GOP-led plan and Republicans responded by threatening more punitive action.