Texas’ 7th Congressional District stretches across Houston’s west side. For decades, it was considered a Republican stronghold. But in the 2016 presidential race, the voters of the 7th district went for Hillary Clinton. Now the district’s incumbent congressman, John Culberson, is running for reelection, and re-energized Democrats see a chance to unseat him. Two Democrats are set for a runoff election this month.
“Really, I looked at the results, and I thought, ‘Donald Trump doesn’t represent this community, the Houston that I’ve spent nearly all of my life in,’” says Lizzie Pannill Fletcher, an attorney and community organizer. Trump’s victory led her to join the record number of women running for Congress this year.
The same is true of Laura Moser, the founder of Daily Action, a web-based political pressure group.
“Like many women and mothers across the country, I was horrified by the election of Donald Trump and decided to become more involved in politics,” Moser says.
