We’re the underdogs in this race. We’re going up against some of the biggest names in Texas politics, billionaire mega-donors, and a whole lot of money.

But we believe our message of division over unity and our grassroots army of 13,000 volunteers are best suited to energize Democrats, young people who have never engaged with politics before, and voters who may have voted Republican previously but are now feeling conned by this administration. Winning is going to require a big tent — and we believe we can build it.

However, our biggest challenge — especially early in this campaign — is reaching voters who might not know about our team and the work we’ve done. An endorsement from Hays County Young Democrats would help us reach young voters and communicate our vision for the future of America. Texas is a huge state, and we need strong partners like Hays County Young Democrats to build an infrastructure that can reach every Texas voter.

Before I was a politician, I was a public school teacher. I taught 6th-grade Language Arts at Rhodes Middle School on the westside of San Antonio.

The Texas Legislature had just gutted the public education budget by $5 billion — so I had 45 kids in my classroom. There weren’t enough desks for everyone, so some of my students sat on the air conditioning unit. In the richest country on the planet, I knew it was unacceptable for public services to be slashed in that way — so I ran for public office to fight back.

As a legislator, I’ve gone toe-to-toe with Big Pharma and other special interests by passing bills to lower the cost of prescription drugs, housing, and child care. I passed major legislation to improve the quality of early childhood education, funnel millions of dollars into our public schools, reform our state’s juvenile justice system, and more.

Because my House Democratic colleagues saw me as a fighter, they selected me to lead the fight against Governor Abbott’s billionaire-backed voucher scam that aims to defund our public schools to subsidize private education for the wealthiest Texans. I’ve led the fight against Christian Nationalist legislation that marginalizes our Muslim, Jewish, Hindu, Buddhist, and atheist neighbors.

I did that by coming prepared to committee meetings and House floor debates, holding the authors of harmful bills accountable and forcing them to answer tough questions about the impact of their legislation. I did it by saturating the press and social media with viral messages that helped to win the messaging war on that harmful legislation.

That legislative and communications work earned me the title of one of the Top 10 Best Legislators by Texas Monthly magazine — and those are the skills that I am prepared to carry with me to Washington as the next U.S. Senator from Texas. As a Presbyterian seminarian and grandson of a Baptist preacher, I’m called to public service to fight for the people of Texas — no matter what it takes.

1. Democracy & Corruption

I believe that if we reform our campaign finance system and increase access to the ballot box, the sky is the limit in terms of what we can do for our communities. As a U.S. Senator, I will prioritize legislation to cap campaign contributions at every level of government, ban dark money groups and super PACs, and ban partisan gerrymandering so that every American has an equal say in our politics and our policymaking.

2. Wages & The Cost of Living

Right now, the rich are getting richer, and the rest of us are struggling to get by. I’m putting forth an ambitious agenda to close tax loopholes and make the wealthiest Americans and giant corporations pay their fair share so that we can lower costs for the rest of us.

I support raising the minimum wage to at least $15 per hour, restoring the Child Tax Credit, protecting Energy Star to reduce utility bills, expanding Medicaid, and expanding the Earned Income Tax Credit and Low-Income Housing Tax Credit to lower costs for working families.

I’ve already delivered major victories to make Texas more affordable — passing legislation to cap insulin at $25, importing cheaper prescription drugs from Canada to lower costs for other life-saving medicines, working to lower the cost of early childhood education by giving a property tax break to child care centers, and fighting to lower the cost of housing by allowing for single-stair units. We can expand on these victories in Congress by sending a fighter to DC.

3. Public Schools

As a former public school teacher, I know that public schools at their best are designed to be the great equalizer. While we haven’t yet achieved that vision, I am committed to strengthening our public schools and fighting back against a national voucher scam that will defund schools to subsidize private education for the wealthiest Americans.

To start students off right, I’ll fight for universal early childhood education, including free PreK for every three and four-year-old, and strong investments in childcare for children under three to ensure childcare is affordable for low and middle-income families.

I’ll prioritize policies that recruit and retain high-quality teachers, and graduating students with the tools to make informed decisions about continuing their education or starting their careers.

Johnny B Good by Chuck Berry

ICE is supposed to be immigration and customs enforcement, but instead it's been turned into a secret police force that's disappearing people off of our streets. Congress has paid for ICE’s reckless explosion in funding this year by cutting our health care. That is unacceptable.

I believe we must take back that funding for health care and completely redesign immigration and customs enforcement in this country to ensure we are tracking down and arresting human traffickers and violent criminals — not moms, babies, and neighbors who contribute to our communities, pay taxes, and pose no threat to our safety.

We must hold ICE accountable for abuses, launch a full investigation into this agency and Kristi Noem, and haul these masked men before the U.S. Senate so the world can see their faces. Real immigration and customs enforcement agents shouldn’t be able to kidnap people off the street without a warrant or use force against immigrants or citizens while wearing masks and refusing to identify themselves.

I have publicly addressed this crisis at multiple events. You can see me sharing my perspective at last week’s Democratic primary debate here: facebook.com/reel/1453810879790144/.

Our government has a role to play in ensuring technology makes our lives easier, safer, and more productive. America should be the world’s innovation leader — but it shouldn’t come at the cost of our children’s safety, our workers’ livelihoods, or our privacy and civil rights.

While we want to protect America’s leadership in artificial intelligence, we are still grappling with how it will affect everything from how we work to how our children learn. We must protect Americans and establish clear, consistent laws for businesses.

We too often think about politics as binary choices. When it comes to regulating the tech sector, some say we must choose between innovation and stagnation or free speech and censorship. I reject that false choice.

We can defend free speech while holding powerful corporations accountable. We can encourage innovation while setting clear guidelines that protect Americans from harm. We can and must do both.

In the legislature, I cosponsored HB 1631 that eliminated due process infringements by prohibiting a local authority from implementing or operating a photographic traffic signal enforcement system. In the Senate, I will protect Americans from invasive AI surveillance and AI policing technology.

I will ensure AI data centers do not disrupt communities or raise energy costs for Americans. I will guarantee large energy users like data centers fund the infrastructure improvements they need rather than passing those costs on to consumers, and support legislation to study the best ways for America to take advantage of the benefits of AI without disrupting communities. I will support regulations that ensure AI data centers follow existing environmental protection laws and, especially, do not impact our already limited water supply.

My north star will always be to protect innocent life. October 7th was the deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust — and Israel has the right to defend its people. But Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu does not have the right to bomb civilians, restrict aid, or use forced famine and collective punishment as tactics. With tens of thousands of civilians killed and unimaginable human suffering in Gaza, America must lead with moral clarity and prevent any U.S. funds from being used to harm civilians.

We must take urgent action to support peace in the Middle East. We must protect innocent life by stopping offensive weapons sales to the Netanyahu government while supporting defensive systems like the Iron Dome alongside agreements that American funds will not be used to harm civilians. I support using all of America’s financial and diplomatic leverage to secure a two-state solution that disarms Hamas, establishes a democratic Palestinian state, halts Israel’s illegal settlements, and respects the sovereignty of both nations.