Castro backs West for Senate
Congressman latest to back state senator in Democratic runoff
San Antonio Congressman Joaquin Castro said Thursday he is throwing his support behind state Sen. Royce West in the Democratic primary runoff for U.S. Senate.
Castro, who joins a growing list of prominent Democrats backing the candidate, said he endorsed West because of the work he's done in his more than two decades in the Texas Legislature. He had previously endorsed Cristina Tzintzún Ramirez in February before the field slimmed down to West and former Air Force pilot MJ Hegar in the runoff. Tzintzún Ramirez has also endorsed West. “Royce West has fought for health care and criminal justice reforms for years — successfully,” said Castro, who worked with West when he was in the Texas House. “He is best suited to provide leadership to more than 25 million Texans as we navigate the COVID-19 pandemic and work to reform policing in America.”
Hegar, meanwhile, has the support of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, which made an unusually early endorsement that angered some who saw it as the establishment unfairly tipping the scales as 12 candidates competed in the primary. Highprofile Democrats who have endorsed Hegar include former presidential candidates Elizabeth Warren and Pete Buttigieg.
Castro himself had considered running for Senate, with the encouragement of party officials and Latinos in public office, but announced in May 2019 that he would not.
“Right now, I’m going to focus on my work in the House of Representatives. I’ve been doing what I feel is important and meaningful work here,” he said at that time. “If and when I run for another office, it is likely to be something that takes me back home to Texas.”