Today, the Texas Organizing Project (TOP) announced the slate of endorsed candidates TOP and TOP PAC will be pushing to the 1.6 million voters of color we are engaging this cycle, the new voices of Texas who will make the difference in flipping the state.
TOP members screened more than 40 candidates this year, including the primaries, in six counties across Texas. It was TOP’s first time endorsing in Travis and Nueces counties. The endorsements are for US president all the way down the ballot of candidates who have shown a commitment to centering the concerns and issues of Black and Latino communities, and who will fight with us to deliver policy changes that will improve our lives.
“I love being part of the screening committee,” said Tangi Smith, a TOP board member from Harris County. “Every election cycle, our expectations to earn our endorsement grow. We need to see a strong commitment to justice and equity. Just being a little bit better than the status quo is not going to cut it.”
In this political moment, when our communities are hurting and putting their lives on the line because they’re frontline workers and are on the streets fighting for justice, our leaders felt the need to lean in on the issues that matter. Our leaders fully understand the challenges of passing more progressive legislation and want to stand behind elected leaders who will share our values on key issues and commit to figuring out how they use their office to move us closer to systemic policy shifts.
“You can’t win the fights that you don’t engage in,” said Bryan Ramirez, a TOP board member from Bexar County. “We are in the fight for Medicare for all, ending mass incarceration, fully funded schools, climate justice, affordable housing and other big, bold ideas that move us forward. We are ready to fight to elect the candidates who will fight with us. Then, once they’re elected, we’ll keep pushing them to deliver.”
For 10 years, TOP has worked to grow the electorate in Texas by engaging Black and Latino voters with little or no history in voting. And for the first time in decades, Texas is a battleground state. Already, our $2 million program has sent more than one million texts and called more than 900,000 voters.
“Our endorsements are more than just permission to add a logo to campaign literature,” said Eric Mata, a TOP board member from Dallas. “Our endorsements represent thousands of hours of work, thousands of conversations. We’re not just trying to win an election; we’re building a movement. This is how we’re building our power. This is how we’re going to change Texas to work for us.”
National
Joe Biden and Kamala Harris for US President and Vice President
Statewide
Chrysta Castañeda for Texas Railroad Commission
Elizabeth Frizell for Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, Place 3
Tina Yoo Clinton for Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, Place 4
Congress
Sima Ladjevardian for Congressional Dist. 2
Sheila Jackson Lee for Congressional Dist. 18
Wendy Davis for Congressional Dist. 21
Candace Valenzuela for Congressional Dist. 24
Sri Kulkarni for Congressional Dist. 22
State House
Sandra Moore for State House Dist.133
Ann Johnson for State House Dist. 134
Jon Rosenthal for State House Dist. 135
Shawn Thierry for State House Dist. 146
Penny Shaw for State House Dist. 148
Jasmine Crockett for State House Dist. 100
Brandy Chambers for State House Dist. 112
Celina Montoya for State House Dist. 121
Sarah DeMerchant for State House Dist. 26
Ron Reynolds for State House Dist. 27
Eliz Markowitz for State House Dist. 28
State Senate
Roland Gutierrez for Texas Senate Dist. 19
Harris County
Rodney Ellis for Harris County Commissioner, Pct. 1
Michael Moore for Harris County Commissioner, Pct. 3
Christian Menefee for Harris County Attorney
Ana Martinez for Texas Judicial Dist. 179
Te’iva Bell for Texas Judicial Dist. 339
Natalia Cornelio for Texas Judicial Dist. 351
Genesis Draper for Harris County Criminal Court, No. 12
Darrell Jordan for Harris County Criminal Court, No. 16
Dallas County
Audra Riley for Dallas County Criminal Dist. Court, No. 3
Bexar County
Rebeca Clay-Flores for Bexar County Commissioner, Pct. 1
Justin Rodriguez for Bexar County Commissioner, Pct. 2
Javier Salazar for Bexar County Sheriff
Travis County:
José Garza for Travis County District Attorney
Nueces County:
Mark Gonzalez for Nueces County District Attorney
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Texas Organizing Project organizes Black and Latino communities in Dallas, Harris and Bexar counties with the goal of transforming Texas into a state where working people of color have the power and representation they deserve. For more information, visit organizetexas.org.
Press release sent out October 2, 2020