Texans Take The Spotlight At DNC Convention
While Texas isn’t considered one of the major battleground states this year (although a recent poll suggests that indeed it is a state race where both Donald Trump and Ted Cruz are leading by single digits), many Texans left their mark at the DNC Convention.
On Monday night, a national audience was introduced to Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett in primetime. A stalwart surrogate for President Joe Biden, Crockett has now taken her linguistic prowess toward the campaign for Vice President Harris. On Monday, Crockett spoke movingly about her own interaction with the Vice President when she wasn’t feeling well about her time in Congress. She also highlighted Harris’s tenure as a prosecutor and how she is now running against a man with 34 felony convictions.
Flash forward to Thursday when Congressman Colin Allred took to the stage and brought the crowd to their feet when he said that on November 5th he will beat Ted Cruz. In the hours since that speech, Allred’s team has reported he raised $1 million.
Texas also played a major role throughout the week as a place with a Trump abortion ban. On Monday, there was an emotional moment during the night with three different stories about the people impacted by these abortion bans. One of those stories included Amanda Zurawski, who experienced pre-term eclampsia and went into septic shock before receiving treatment for pregnancy loss.
The restrictions on reproductive freedom in Texas also played a major part during Tuesday’s state roll call. This is normally a very staid affair that is essentially a formality that’s not fit for broadcasting. With appearances by Lil Jon, Sean Astin (to chants of “Rudy”), and a playlist that has made some Spotify records, this year’s roll call for the DNC was anything but staid.
For Texas, actress Eva Longoria introduced former Planned Parenthood president Cecile Richards (also the daughter of legendary Governor Ann Richards), who then turned to Kate Cox. She made headlines when she had to flee the state of Texas for an abortion after she discovered a fatal fetal abnormality. She led the state’s roll call and also announced she was expecting a child due in January in time for President Kamala Harris.
Gun safety was also a running theme throughout the DNC Convention. On Thursday there was a somber panel with the victims of gun violence on stage. Kimberly Mata-Rubio shared the devastating moment when she learned her daughter Lexi had been killed at Robb Elementary in Uvalde in 2022.
All in all, Texas really represented throughout the DNC Convention. The Chicks even performed the national anthem on Thursday evening.
