Lupe Valdez Will Run For Governor Of Texas In 2018

DALLAS, TX — It's official, Lupe Valdez has announced she is running for governor of Texas.

Valdez will run as a Democrat and will face off against seven other candidates in the March 2018 primaries. Those confirmed democratic contenders are Gerry Brown, Cedric Davis, Adrian Ocegueda, Jeffrey Payne, Thomas Wakely, Lee Weaver and Grady Yarbrough.

In June, Ballotpedia rated the gubernatorial election "safely republican," but a democratic contender with a strong background could leave the election vulnerable to the DNC.

Texans have not elected a Democrat to a statewide office in an approximate 25 years, and voters in the state have not voted in majority for a Democratic presidential candidate since Jimmy Carter, according to Ballotpedia,

Valdez is the only female Hispanic sheriff in the United States and only one of four female sheriffs in Texas. If elected, Valdez will be the third female governor to serve the state of Texas and the first LGBT person to hold the office.

The Dallas County Sheriff's Department said in a press release Wednesday, "The department thanks her for serving as our Sheriff for the last 13 years. We wish her well as she enters the next phase in her career."

From Valdez's resignation letter to Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins:

I have had the privilege of serving the Dallas County Sheriff's Office Department and the people of Dallas County for over a decade.
Together we have worked and accomplished many things. Although, I could go on with a list of accomplishments that we have done together, I would rather express the gratitude to the groups, organization and individual who [have] assisted in the direction of the department. The department went from being an embarrassment of the state, to the example of the nation. This could only be done with the help of the entire community. No one does it alone.
Therefore, it is with sadness but with much gratitude that I am resigning as sheriff of Dallas County as of December 6, 2017. But I am excited and grateful about the next step.

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Associated Press file photo, Donna McWilliam