Texas is receiving the kind of political attention usually reserved for states where neither party can feel comfortable. With the November election approaching, the Senate contest between Republican Ken Paxton and Democrat James Talarico has become a test of party loyalty, candidate appeal and voters' concerns about their finances. President Donald Trump's planned October 7 appearance in San Antonio underscores the stakes. Reuters reported that the trip would be his third Tex

Texas is at the center of the national debate over access to books in public schools, following a new report identifying it as the state with the most school book bans during the 2025–26 academic year. PEN America, a free-expression organization that opposes book censorship, reported 11,982 instances of school book bans nationwide. Texas accounted for more than 8,100, according to reporting by the Houston Chronicle. The findings were released during Banned Books Week and refl

HOUSTON — The bodies have surfaced in bayous winding through Houston and in the waters of Austin’s Lady Bird Lake. Some deaths have clear explanations. Others have left questions that continue to fuel fears of a serial killer. Now, reports that Carl Clint Ashworth has relocated from Houston to Austin have added another thread to the controversy surrounding the former long-haul truck driver. According to confidential sources cited by The Tampa Bay Chronicle, Ashworth reemerged

In South Texas, immigration enforcement is also a story about whether a construction crew arrives, a farm has enough workers and a local business can keep its schedule. The debate increasingly connects border policy with the daily mechanics of the regional economy. An October 7 Washington Post report described labor pressures in the Rio Grande Valley amid increased immigration arrests. Its analysis found construction payrolls in the Brownsville-Harlingen area down 5 percent f

HUNTSVILLE — A stolen generator threatened Rodeo Mexican Bar & Grill’s plans for Fair on the Square, but offers of help from the community gave the restaurant a way forward before the October 3 event. Owner Delfina Perez told Chron that residents offered assistance, including Mayor Russell Humphrey, who offered to lend a generator powerful enough for the food truck. By October 2, Perez said the business still planned to participate. She had filed a police report; the equipmen

HUNTSVILLE, Texas — A fire swept through part of the Sam Houston Memorial Museum grounds early September 23, destroying two workshops and badly damaging a third. The historic cabins nearby were spared, and museum officials say operations will continue while investigators determine what caused the blaze. Huntsville firefighters were called around midnight to the museum property near 19th Street and Sam Houston Avenue. Flames had reached multiple buildings by the time crews arr

President Donald Trump spent months arguing that the United States needed Greenland. On Tuesday, he signed an agreement that expands America’s military role on the Arctic island while leaving its sovereignty where it was: with the Kingdom of Denmark and the people of Greenland. The agreement, signed in New York by Trump, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen and Greenland Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen, permits the United States to strengthen its existing Pituffik Spa

Huntsville, Texas, has long depended on two institutions: Sam Houston State University and the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Both continue to shape local employment and spending. But the city’s economic outlook increasingly depends on what happens around them—new homes, retail activity, transportation improvements and the ability to attract businesses that offer a wider range of jobs. The city’s population was estimated at 49,088 in July 2025, according to the U.S. Ce

For millions of Americans, the first house was never supposed to be the dream house. It might have had two bedrooms, a cramped kitchen, one bathroom and a backyard that needed work. The appliances were old. The neighborhood wasn't glamorous. There was probably a list of improvements waiting for the new owner. That was the point. The starter home gave ordinary working people an affordable entrance into homeownership. They could purchase something modest, make payments, build e

TAMPA — Americans have been conditioned to know—or at least worry about—their credit score. That three-digit number can determine whether someone qualifies for a mortgage, finances a car or receives a favorable interest rate. Financial-services veteran James Catledge believes Americans may be paying attention to the wrong score. His new company, Financial Scoring, is built around a different question: Are you financially prepared for retirement? Catledge calls the answer a pe

AUSTIN — Texas has spent years selling itself as the place where Americans can find jobs, build businesses and pursue a more affordable life. The latest employment numbers suggest the message is still working. But the state's remarkable economic expansion is creating another question: Can Texas build fast enough to accommodate its own success? New labor-market data released Friday shows Texas added 159,400 nonfarm jobs between August 2025 and August 2026, more than any other

AUSTIN — For more than three decades, Texas has been one of the most dependable Republican states in America. Democrats have repeatedly predicted that changing demographics and rapidly growing cities would eventually turn the state competitive. In 2026, that prediction may finally face its biggest test. The U.S. Senate race between Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton and Democratic state Rep. James Talarico has developed into one of the most closely watched elections in th

HUNTSVILLE, Texas — Huntsville has long been a city defined by its history. Sam Houston lived here. The Texas prison system established deep roots here. Sam Houston State University grew into one of the region's most important institutions. But the Huntsville of 2035 may be defined less by its past than by what is being built today. Across the city, signs of change are becoming increasingly difficult to miss. New homes are being constructed, restaurants are announcing locatio

AUSTIN, Texas — Texas is putting the brakes on the expansion of automated license-plate surveillance, raising new questions about how far law enforcement should be allowed to go in tracking vehicles traveling across the state. Gov. Greg Abbott has directed state agencies to stop spending state money on additional automated license-plate reader cameras operated by Flock Safety, a technology company whose camera systems have become increasingly common among police departments a

HUNTSVILLE, Texas — Huntsville's restaurant scene is getting another new addition, and this one comes with ties to one of the country's best-known restaurant companies. Jaggers, a fast-casual concept created by Texas Roadhouse founder Kent Taylor, is preparing to open at 253 Interstate 45 South, taking over the building previously occupied by Taco Cabana. Signage announcing the restaurant has already appeared at the property, with an anticipated opening during the first quart

HUNTSVILLE, Texas — For generations, Huntsville has been known primarily for three things: Sam Houston, the Texas prison system and Sam Houston State University. But in 2026, the Walker County seat is increasingly becoming something else—a growing regional city attempting to manage the opportunities and pressures that accompany expansion. Perhaps the clearest indication of that change is occurring at Sam Houston State University. SHSU reported an unofficial record enrollment

HUNTSVILLE, Texas — Texas prison officials are asking state lawmakers for nearly $300 million to expand air conditioning across the state's correctional system, an issue with particular significance in Huntsville, home to several major prison facilities and the headquarters of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. TDCJ has requested approximately $298 million over the next two years to install air conditioning for more than 15,700 additional prison beds. The agency says t

HOLLYWOOD — Something unusual is happening in the American movie business. Audiences are returning to theaters in enormous numbers, yet many of the people who actually make movies in Hollywood are struggling to find work. The summer of 2026 delivered the strongest evidence yet that moviegoing itself is far from dead. Domestic theaters generated approximately $4.76 billion between May 1 and Labor Day, narrowly setting a new summer box-office record. An estimated 322.8 million

For decades, the idea that intelligent machines could destroy humanity belonged largely to science fiction. Computers would become self-aware, turn against their creators and wage war on civilization. Today, the concern sounds different—and some of the people raising it are among those who helped build modern artificial intelligence. The danger does not necessarily involve humanoid robots suddenly deciding they hate humans. Researchers studying advanced AI are concerned about

Huntsville has traditionally been defined by three things: Sam Houston State University, the Texas prison system and its identity as a relatively small East Texas community. Growth could eventually complicate that description. Huntsville's adopted comprehensive plan recorded a population of 45,941 in 2020 and projected approximately 59,431 residents by 2035 and 64,496 by 2040. The plan even noted that some participants believed the city could grow faster than those projection