(NewsNation) — Two Democratic Texas lawmakers were evacuated from a hotel outside of Chicago on Wednesday morning after an apparent bomb threat.
“In response to the threat, 400 people were immediately evacuated and the area was secured as bomb squad units conducted their investigation,” the St. Charles Police Department said in a statement.
Texas state Reps. John Bucy of Austin and Ann Johnson of Houston fled to Illinois in protest of the Republican-backed redistricting map plans. Many Texas House Democrats left the state Sunday to prevent a vote on the newly drawn maps.
“This morning, a threat was made against the safety of the members of the Texas House Democratic Caucus. We are safe, we are secure, and we are undeterred,” caucus leaders said in a statement.
“This is what happens when Republican state leaders publicly call for us to be ‘hunted down.’ Texas Democrats won’t be intimidated,” Bucy said in a statement on X.
The bomb threat follows comments from Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and other Republican leaders.
“Democrats in the Texas House who try and run away like cowards should be found, arrested, and brought back to the Capitol immediately. We should use every tool at our disposal to hunt down those who think they are above the law,” he said in a statement on X.
Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, also sent a letter to FBI Director Kash Patel requesting help to “locate or arrest potential lawbreakers who have fled the state.”