Texas Senate passes GOP voting bill after Democrat ends 15-hour filibuster

The Texas Senate approved a Republican-backed bill that contains new voting restrictions on Thursday after a Democratic senator filibustered for 15 hours in an effort to stop the measure, AP reports.

Why it matters: While the vote brings Texas a step closer to enacting the bill, the measure continues to face trouble in the state House, where Democrats have prevented quorum by staying away in a weeks-long standoff.

Catch up quick: The Texas House speaker late Tuesday signed civil arrest warrants for 52 Democratic lawmakers who fled the state last month to block the GOP effort to pass the voting restrictions.

• The Democrats, however, remain defiant, per AP.
• The bill would make it harder to vote in a state that already has one of the most restrictive voting laws in the country. Democrats highlight that the restrictions will disproportionately affect people of color.
• Republicans maintain the new legislation is meant to make it “easier to vote and harder to cheat," per the Washington Post.

What she's saying: “My friends, voter suppression anywhere is a threat to democracy everywhere,” Senate Democratic Caucus Chair Carol Alvarado said during her filibuster, per the Post.

• "As we draw this discussion to an end, it is my sincere hope that civil acts by everyday Texans — from the Senate floor to the ballot box — can help shed the light.”