Henry Cuellar

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Henry Cuellar

Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Texas's 28th district
In office 2005 - present
Preceded by	Ciro Rodriguez
Succeeded by	Incumbent

Born	September 19, 1955 (age 51) Laredo, Texas
Political party	Democratic
Spouse	Imelda Cuellar
Religion	Roman Catholic

Henry Roberto Cuellar (b. September 19, 1955) is a Democratic politician from Laredo, Texas, representing the state's 28th Congressional district (map) in the United States House of Representatives. Cuellar's district extends from the Rio Grande to the suburbs of San Antonio.

He was born in Laredo, Texas, where he has lived for most of his life. He is a graduate of the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University and holds a Juris Doctor and a Doctor of Philosophy from the University of Texas.

Prior to being elected to the United States House of Representatives, Cuellar was a member of the Texas House of Representatives from 1987 to 2001, representing part of Laredo. He was selected Secretary of State of Texas in 2001 by Republican governor Rick Perry. Before turning to politics, Cuellar was a lawyer and owned a private trade firm.

Cuellar and his wife, Imelda, have two daughters, Christina Alexandra and Catherine Ann.

1 Election to the House of Representatives
2 Controversies over Party Loyalty
3 2006 election
4 External links

[edit] Election to the House of Representatives

In the 2002 election, Cuellar was the Democratic Party nominee for the House of Representatives in Texas's 23rd congressional district. He lost to five-term incumbent Republican Henry Bonilla by two percentage points in the closest race Bonilla had faced to that date.

Cuellar spent much of the early part of 2003 preparing for a rematch against Bonilla. However, the 2003 Texas redistricting shifted most of Laredo, which had been the heart of the 23rd since its creation in 1966, into the 28th district, represented by Democrat Ciro Rodriguez. Cuellar challenged Rodriguez for the nomination and won it by 58 votes ^[1]. The 28th is far more Democratic than the 23rd, and Cuellar's victory in the general election was a foregone conclusion. In November, he defeated Republican Jim Hopson of Seguin by a 20-point margin.

Cuellar's election to the House in 2004 was a standout for Democrats in a year in which Republicans gained seats in Texas in the House of Representation because of redistricting.

[edit] Controversies over Party Loyalty

However, Cuellar is not a party loyalist; he endorsed Republican George W. Bush for President in 2000 but supported John Forbes Kerry in 2004. Additionally, during Bush's 2006 State of the Union address, a Washington Post photographer snapped a photo of Cuellar standing on the Republican side of the aisle, gleaming as President Bush affectionately grabbed his face. Soon after the release of this photo, campaign contributions for his Democratic primary opponent, Ciro Rodriguez, saw an immediate and significant increase.

Cuellar describes himself as a "moderate conservative." He recently gained the endorsement of the Club for Growth, a conservative group that usually endorses Republicans, in the 2006 primary.

When he was first elected, the Blue Dog Democrats, a group of moderate to conservative Democrats in the House, rejected his application for membership over concerns he would switch parties.

[edit] 2006 election

On March 7, 2006, Cuellar again defeated Rodriguez in the Democratic primary with 52 percent of the vote in a three-way race.

On June 29, the U.S. Supreme Court declared that the Texas Legislature violated the rights of Latino voters when it shifted most of Laredo out of the 23rd and replaced it with several heavily Republican San Antonio suburbs.^[2] As a result, nearly every congressional district from El Paso to San Antonio had to be redrawn, and the primary results for these districts were invalidated. A court drew a new map in which all of Laredo was moved into the 28th district while the south San Antonio area was moved to the 23rd. An election open to all candidates with a runoff if no candidate won 50% was scheduled for the date of the general election, November 7, 2006. Cuellar was unopposed by a Republican in the 2006 election and was reelected with 68% of the vote.

[edit] External links

U.S. Congressman Henry Cuellar official House site
Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
Federal Election Commission - Henry R Cuellar campaign finance reports and data
On the Issues - Henry Cuellar issue positions and quotes
OpenSecrets.org - Henry Cuellar campaign contributions
Project Vote Smart - Representative Henry Cuellar (TX) profile
SourceWatch Congresspedia - Henry Cuellar profile
Washington Post - Congress Votes Database: Henry Cuellar voting record
Henry Cuellar for Congressman official campaign site

Preceded by William N. Hall, Jr.	Member of the Texas House of Representatives from District 43 (Laredo) 1987–1993	Succeeded by Pedro G. Nieto
Preceded by Renato Cuellar	Member of the Texas House of Representatives from District 42 (Laredo) 1993–2001	Succeeded by Richard Raymond
Preceded by Ciro Rodriguez	Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Texas's 28th congressional district 2005 – present	Incumbent