In November, Greg Casar a Texas native and son of Mexican immigrants won the seat for Texas Congressional District 35. Casar will be sworn in on January 3 along with other new congressional representatives.
Recently represented by Democrat Lloyd Doggett, District 35 covers parts of San Antonio, San Marcos and Austin. After redistricting, Congressman Doggett felt that he would be a better representative for Texas Congressional District 37. His decision left the District 35 seat open. Casar won by a landslide against Republican candidate Dan McQueen.
Casar, a progressive Democrat, campaigned on issues of reproductive healthcare access, criminal justice reform and immigrant rights.
Representative-elect Casar became well known during his tenure on Austin City Council. It was there that he showed support for police budget reform, he passed Texas’ first Fair Chance Hiring Policy and established a legal defense fund for immigrants.
The freshman congressman has campaigned on progressive values but what are his goals once he is sworn in?
What does Casar hope to work on first? What policies does he hope to implement? What are his key legislative policies? How will he serve his constituents, even those that did not vote for him?
Guest: U.S. Representative-elect Greg Casar, Texas' 35th Congressional District
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*This interview was recorded on Monday, December 5.