The legal battle over voting rights between Texas' Democrat-controlled cities and its Republican attorney general has escalated. Austin's Travis County — a longtime blue stronghold — has filed a federal lawsuit against Texas AG Ken Paxton and Texas Secretary of State Jane Nelson over the state's efforts to block municipal voter-registration efforts before the November election. The legal filing comes as Paxton, a vocal ally of former President Donald Trump, has pursued lawsuits in state courts to block counties from sending voter-registration cards to people flagged as eligible but unregistered voters.