As the sheriff and businessman go one more round, Democrats are divided
Peggy Fikac, Austin Bureau
1of17Maria Berriozabal (left), the first Hispanic woman to hold political office in a major Texas city, chats with Dallas County Sheriff Lupe Valdez at the Southwest Voter Registration Education Project Willie Velásquez Benefit Dinner on Wednesday, May 9, 2018. Valdez is in a run-off against Andrew White for the Democratic pick for Texas governor. The winner between Valdez and White will run against incumbent Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott. (Kin Man Hui/San Antonio Express-News)Kin Man Hui, Staff / San Antonio Express-NewsShow MoreShow Less
2of17Texas A&M Chancellor John Sharp speaks at the Southwest Voter Registration Education Project Willie Velásquez Benefit Dinner on Wednesday, May 9, 2018. (Kin Man Hui/San Antonio Express-News)Kin Man Hui, Staff / San Antonio Express-NewsShow MoreShow Less
5of17Dallas County Sheriff Lupe Valdez chats with Bexar County Judge Nelson Wolff and Texas A&M Chancellor John Sharp as they attend the Southwest Voter Registration Education Project Willie Velásquez Benefit Dinner on Wednesday, May 9, 2018. Valdez is in a run-off against Andrew White for the Democratic pick for Texas governor. The winner between Valdez and White will run against incumbent Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott. (Kin Man Hui/San Antonio Express-News)Kin Man Hui, Staff / San Antonio Express-NewsShow MoreShow Less
7of17Dallas County Sheriff Lupe Valdez attends and speaks at the Southwest Voter Registration Education Project Willie Velásquez Benefit Dinner on Wednesday, May 9, 2018. Valdez is in a run-off against Andrew White for the Democratic pick for Texas governor. The winner between Valdez and White will run against incumbent Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott. (Kin Man Hui/San Antonio Express-News)Kin Man Hui, Staff / San Antonio Express-NewsShow MoreShow Less
10of17Dallas County Sheriff Lupe Valdez attends and speaks at the Southwest Voter Registration Education Project Willie Velásquez Benefit Dinner on Wednesday, May 9, 2018. Valdez is in a run-off against Andrew White for the Democratic pick for Texas governor. The winner between Valdez and White will run against incumbent Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott. (Kin Man Hui/San Antonio Express-News)Kin Man Hui, Staff / San Antonio Express-NewsShow MoreShow Less
13of17Democratic gubernatorial candidate Lupe Valdez, seen in San Antonio on May 9, says health care will get much-needed attention once she's in chargeKin Man Hui /San Antonio Express-NewsShow MoreShow Less
AUSTIN — Kaylee Delgado was ready to find inspiration in Lupe Valdez's run for governor.
"The idea of a Latina in power is, obviously, something very appealing to a young Latina like myself," said Delgado, who grew up in Brownsville and is majoring in biology at St. Edward's University in Austin.
Delgado's parents were migrant farmworkers when she was growing up, and her father still is.
That made Valdez's race particularly meaningful, since the candidate came from a migrant farmworker family to blaze a trail as the first woman and first Latina elected sheriff of Dallas county.
But after hearing Valdez "skirting around" a question about her record as sheriff on detaining immigrants for the federal government, Delgado went the other way.
She and other student leaders with the Latino group Jolt agreed to back Houston businessman Andrew White in the May 22 runoff for the Democratic nomination to challenge Republican incumbent Gov. Greg Abbott.
Early voting starts Monday.
"He understands how important the Latino community is going forward, and how important it will be in politics," Delgado said of White, seeing him as ready to fight for people like her on issues such as immigration and social justice.
But the Jolt kerfuffle didn't shake Valdez supporters such as Sen. José Menéndez, a San Antonio Democrat who first talked with Valdez in 2004 when she was running for sheriff and cold-called him to ask for his support.
"I found her to be extremely forthright, straightforward and honest," said Menéndez. He said both candidates are "excellent" but particularly likes Valdez's resume, which includes work as a federal agent before becoming sheriff.
"Whoever is in that seat (as governor) is going to have to weigh a lot of different, competing interests and bring some wisdom and some judgment to the calls that they have to make," Menéndez said.
He also said that while there shouldn't be a quota system for selecting candidates, "I do think it's better for us — whether it's a state, a country or a political party — to work hard to bring diversity to the forefront. That's what makes us stronger."
The Jolt snub was in stark contrast to the welcome Valdez received at the Southwest Voter Registration Education Project's Willie C. Velásquez Benefit Dinner on Wednesday in San Antonio, which had the feel of a family gathering.
Although the group is non-partisan, Valdez received standing ovations as she took the stage for a speech and as she finished.
Warm laughter and applause were quick to come from the audience as she talked about her family, the not-always-warm welcome she received when she took over as sheriff and her ideals.
"I believe in giving people a fighting chance," she said, sounding a theme of her campaign.
White's signature phrase is an echo of his father, the late Democratic former Gov. Mark White, who quoted Texas icon Sam Houston to describe his guiding principle.
"We need leaders who do right and risk the consequences," White says.
The candidates cite strengths that come from their differing backgrounds.
Valdez, 70, worked as an elected official to oversee a large, important agency and address problems that had put it under federal monitoring. The foundation for change, she said, was "the attitude that we are there to serve and protect."
Her record overseeing the jail drew a sharp question from Jolt at a forum for what one questioner called her "anti-immigrant" record.
But Valdez has pointed out that she was targeted by Abbott when she said she wouldn't comply with all federal requests to detain unauthorized immigrants past their release date if they were accused of only minor offenses. She told the San Antonio Express-News that she did what she could, but she didn't want to risk the loss of grants to other programs if she went too far.
White, 45, is an entrepreneur who sold his home to start home-warranty and home-repair companies, sold them at an apparently big profit and now invests in other startups that deal with technology and energy innovations meant to promote safety and be more environmentally friendly.
"There is a greater purpose to all of these in addition to an economic purpose," he said.
After getting criticism from Jolt about a border-security business he owns, in which his father had been a partner, White disclosed plans to sell it.
Whichever candidate wins the nomination, both appear ready to fight for the same Democratic issues in the uphill battle against Abbott's formidable campaign machine.
They favor health care improvements, education investment and a shift of state money from securing the border — which they point out is the federal government's job — to public schools.
Both support raising the minimum wage from $7.25 an hour, although only Valdez has said she supports making it $15. White said it should be higher, but he doesn't think $15 is possible.
Both oppose the sanctuary cities ban that was championed by Abbott and fought by local law enforcement officials around the state, including Valdez.
And both decry the bathroom bill backed by Abbott. The failed bill would have restricted transgender people's use of public restrooms.
Valdez, a lesbian, early in the race recounted her reaction to a newspaper photo of a child clinging to an adult during the discussion of that measure. She told the Express-News, "The face was a face of hurt. And I remember saying, what are we doing to our children?"
White — who was endorsed by Houston's GLBT Political Caucus even though Valdez was the first lesbian elected Dallas County sheriff — said he supports same-sex marriage "100 percent."
"If I'm elected governor, I'll be happy to oversee or perform marriages right there in the state Capitol for same-sex couples," he said.
On abortion, both said they support a woman's right to choose the procedure, although White describes himself as personally pro-life.
That personal position has alienated some influential Demorats despite him saying that he would veto measures infringing on women's decision on abortion.
White's campaign statements on gay marriage and abortion led him to resign as an elder in his Presbyterian Church, although he said he remains a member of the congregation.
"The first rule of an elder is not to create controversy, and my campaign was creating controversy because of my stance on marriage equality and because of my stance supporting Roe vs. Wade," he said.
Asked about giving up such a position for his run, White said, "I'm trying to become the governor of a state with 28 million people in it who have one of the worst education systems and a failing health care system, and people are suffering. This is the most important thing I've done in my life."
Valdez also has given up something, as someone who could easily have retired as sheriff with a reputation as a trailblazer. With her statewide race,she has opened herself up to questions and criticism when she doesn't give crisp answers or stumbles over facts. But she keeps her eye on what she sees as the big picture.
"You want a person (as governor) who not only has the ability and the leadership, but also has compassion," she said. "I've been there. I know what it is not to have health insurance. I know what it is to have to work two jobs to go to college. And I certainly know what it is to make choices on your budget: Rent or doctor. …. The type of governor that I would want is somebody who never stops trying, but also has compassion."
pfikac@express-news.net @pfikac
Peggy Fikac
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Peggy Fikac is Austin bureau chief and columnist for the San Antonio Express-News, delving into politics and policy in areas including the state budget, where the intersection of the two is compelling.
She covers Gov. Greg Abbott, who won the state's top seat after a nationally noticed campaign against Wendy Davis; dug into Ted Cruz's ascent to the U.S. Senate; covered George W. Bush as governor and during his races for president; and has bird-dogged Rick Perry's tenure as Texas' longest-serving governor, his White House ambitions and his indictment.
Peggy was bureau chief for the Houston Chronicle as well as the Express-News for more than five years when the two combined their Austin operations.
She previously worked for the Associated Press, where she covered the late Ann Richards during both of her campaigns for governor and specialized in public education and legislative coverage. Peggy also has been the correspondent for three Rio Grande Valley newspapers, starting as a senior at her alma mater, the University of Texas at Austin.