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For Immediate Release: Texas Equity PAC Endorses Five Texas State Senators for Re-Election Who Received an A on the Equality Texas Legislative Scorecard in Our Second Round of Endorsements for the 2020 General Election
Posted on February 4, 2020 at 4:00 pm

Contact:  Angela Hale, Equality Texas  angela.hale@equalitytexas.org

Texas Equity PAC Endorses Five Texas State Senators for Re-Election Who Received an A on the Equality Texas Legislative Scorecard in Our Second Round of Endorsements for the 2020 General Election

Austin, TX (February 3, 2019) – Today, the Texas Equity PAC, the political action committee of Equality Texas, the largest statewide organization solely dedicated to securing full equality for LGBTQ Texans, endorsed all Texas State Senators who received an A on the Equality Texas Legislative Scorecard for the 2019 Legislative Session.

Our second round of endorsements of the 2020 general election includes five Texas State Senators. The Texas Equity PAC proudly endorses Senator Juan “Chuy” Hinojosa of McAllen and José Menéndez who received an A+ on the Equality Texas Scorecard. We also endorse Senators Carol Alvarado and Borris Miles of Houston and Senator Judith Zaffirini of Laredo who all received an A on the Equality Texas Scorecard.

“The five Texas State Senators we are endorsing today are strong and longtime advocates fighting for equality in the Texas Senate. These senators authored pro-equality bills and amendments and led the fight in the senate to beat back the lt. governor’s anti-LGBTQ agenda and showed tremendous leadership fighting for the very heart of our mission and guiding principles of full equality for every Texan,” said Ricardo Martinez, CEO of Texas Equity PAC.

Senator John Whitmire of Houston, who received an A+ on the Equality Texas Scorecard is not up for re-election in 2020. Senator Nathan Johnson of Dallas, Senator Beverly Powell of Ft. Worth, Senator Kirk Watson of Austin all received an A on the Equality Texas Scorecard are not up for re-election in 2020.

Senator Jose Rodríguez of El Paso also received an A+ but is not running for re-election. Equality Texas recently awarded Senator Rodríguez with our Lifetime Achievement Award for his decade of dedication fighting for LGBTQ Equality at the Texas Capitol.

Equality Texas will miss the leadership of Senator Jose Rodríguez in the Texas Senate and wants to publicly thank him again for his years of exemplary leadership on LGBTQ issues. Every session, Sen. Rodríguez filed a comprehensive non-discrimination bill that would extend nondiscrimination protections for LGBTQ people in employment, housing and public accommodations. He also ensured that he had strong LQBTQ representation on his staff, and he has been one of Equality Texas’ strongest voices and allies in the Legislature,” said Ricardo Martinez, CEO of Texas Equity PAC.

Senator Royce West of Dallas also received an A from Equality Texas. However, he is currently running for the U.S. Senate — a federal race in which the Texas Equity PAC does not issue endorsements.

About our Endorsement Process:

Endorsements are only done for Texas races. Senate and House endorsements are based on the following factors: Authorship or co-authorship of legislation that supports full lived equality for LGBTQ people, 2) floor votes on good and bad bills and amendments in their deliberations, 3) LGBTQ Caucus membership, and 4) exceptional leadership in committee work to protect LGBTQ rights and/or in breaking with their party to support nondiscrimination or speak publicly on behalf of the LGBTQ community.

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The Texas Equity PAC helps elect pro-equality state & local candidates. It is the political action committee of Equality Texas, the largest statewide organization working to secure full equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer Texans through political action, education, community organizing, and collaboration.