U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ)

A group of Texas churches and the IRS agreed to nix the Johnson Amendment, which prohibits nonprofits from endorsing candidates. A Trump-appointed judge said no.

The U.S. Department of Justice claimed in court it already has sensitive data on voters so it can check for people who should not be registered. However, the Kansas secretary of state said none of that information has been shared.

The Justice Department has asked states for their voter rolls with an eye toward purging ineligible voters. Democrats say sharing the data could violate federal election law.

The Texas Supreme Court on Tuesday finalized a tentative opinion issued in September that no longer requires soon-to-be lawyers to attend a law school accredited by the American Bar Association. The power to approve those law schools now rests with the state's highest civil court.

Kansas Secretary of State Scott Schwab and Missouri Secretary of State Denny Hoskins, both Republicans, said the partnership would enhance voter roll maintenance by "securely" sharing personal details on 1.87 million registered voters in Kansas and 4.13 million registered voters in Missouri.

Gov. Greg Abbott filed the designation letter Tuesday.

The 5th Circuit last year overturned its previous ruling that allowed racial groups to band together to challenge voting maps, laying the groundwork for Texas' mid-decade redistricting.

On the first day of a two-week trial, the plaintiffs' lawyers honed in on who drew the new map and whether race was a factor.

The saga of the Texas mid-decade redistricting of congressional districts is one of the biggest political stories of the year. Here's a timeline of the major milestones.

The federal government joined the private prison company CoreCivic in its legal fight against the city of Leavenworth, which has been fighting in court to stop the reopening of a controversial detention center for immigrants.