The state senator who came to Wendy Davis’ side as she filibustered Texas’ restrictive abortion law over the summer is joining her again — this time in the race for governor.
Leticia Van de Putte, a six-term Democrat from San Antonio, announced Saturday that she will run for lieutenant governor. Van de Putte came to the Texas Statehouse from her father’s funeral to support Davis’ June 25 filibuster. In the final moments of Davis’ marathon effort, Van de Putte also called out a male colleague for ignoring her and silencing women’s voices in a debate over their health care decisions. “At what point must a female senator raise her hand or her voice to be recognized over her male colleagues?” she asked.
The 58-year-old is a pharmacist and was a member of the Texas House of Representatives from 1990 to 1999. If elected, she would be the first Latina lieutenant governor of Texas.
This is the first time in the state’s history that two women have topped the ticket for one of the major parties.
Meredith Clark
Meredith Clark is a freelance writer and editor. She was previously a senior news producer for "Patriot Act with Hasan Minhaj," a reporter with MSNBC.com, the digital politics and culture editor at Glamour and a senior news and politics editor at Refinery29. She has written for Vulture, Rolling Stone, Self, Marie Claire, Cosmopolitan, The Daily Beast and Bustle.