Texas state Sen. Leticia Van de Putte (D) launched her campaign for lieutenant governor Saturday, giving Democrats hope to challenge the state’s Republican leadership with a strong all-female ticket.
Van de Putte came out swinging, according to the Dallas Morning News, and took shots against the state’s top Republicans as she formally announced her candidacy in front of a crowd of 700 supporters.
“For a long time, the politicians in charge around here haven’t done much to make Texas a place worthy of our pride in it. Texas families have carried the slack on their own,” she said, as quoted by the Dallas Morning News. “For years, the governor’s been too busy trying to be president and the lieutenant governor’s been too busy trying to get to the U.S. Senate. Nobody’s been minding the store.”
Van de Putte was referring to Gov. Rick Perry’s unsuccessful presidential campaign and her presumed opponent Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst’s failed U.S. Senate bid.
Texas Democrats hope that with state Sen. Wendy Davis at the helm of the 2014 ticket and Van de Putte running for the No. 2 post, the party has its best opportunity in years to take back the state’s top leadership positions, according to the newspaper.
This post has been updated.
