Lupe Valdez
| Guadalupe "Lupe" Valdez | |
| In office January 1, 2005 – December 6, 2017 | |
| Preceded by | Jim Bowles |
|---|---|
| Succeeded by | Marian Brown |
| Born | October 11, 1947 San Antonio, Texas |
| Political party | Democrat |
| Alma mater | Southern Nazarene University University of Texas at Arlington |
| Occupation | Law enforcement officer Captain in the United States Army |
Guadalupe Valdez, known as Lupe Valdez (born October 11, 1947), is a Mexican-American law enforcement official who served from 2005 to 2017 as the sheriff of Dallas County, Texas.
On December 6, 2017, she resigned her position as sheriff to run for the Democratic nomination for governor of Texas. If she defeats intra-party rival, Andrew White of Houston, the son of the late Governor Mark White, she will compete in the general election on November 6 against the incumbent Republican Greg Abbott.[1]
In the primary election held on March 6, 2018, Valdez led a nine-candidate field with 42.6 percent of the ballots cast. White trailed with 28.9 percent and will compete with Valdez in a May 22 runoff.[2]
The youngest of eight children of migrant farm workers, Valdez was reared in her native San Antonio, Texas. After working for a time in the farm fields herselp, she entered college and earned a bachelor's degree from Southern Nazarene University in Bethany, Oklahoma. She then earned a master's degree in criminology and criminal justice from the University of Texas at Arlington.[3]
After service in the United States Army, having advanced to the rank of captain, she became a jailer in a county jail and then a federal penitentiary. She retired in 2004 from the Customs Service within the United States Department of Homeland Security to run for sheriff in Dallas County. She is the first lesbian to have been the Dallas County sheriff.[4]
White has presented himself as a "moderate" in the race in contrast to the outspoken liberal Valdez, who led in ten of the fifteen largest counties in the state in the primary. Two former African-American candidates have endorsed White, Cedric Davis, Sr., a former mayor of Balch Springs who ran for governor and Michael Cooper, an unsuccessful candidate for the Democratic nomination for lieutenant governor, a post held by the Republican Dan Patrick. Cooper said that he believes White is "the only candidate with a viable strategy" to unseat Abbott in November.[4]
Political prognosticators, however, believe that Valdez's base is more likely to turn out for the runoff than are White's supporters.[4]
References
- ↑ Lupe Valdez resigns as Dallas County sheriff, announces her run for Texas governor. Dallas News (December 6, 2017). Retrieved on March 17, 2018.
- ↑ Election Returns. Texas Secretary of State (March 6, 2018). Retrieved on March 17, 2018.
- ↑ From farm to mansion? Lupe Valdez relishes underdog role in race for Texas governor. Dallas News. Retrieved on March 6, 2018.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Peggy Fikac, "Valez, White marked by contrast in styles," San Antonio Express-News, March 17, 2018, pp. 1, A10.