Henry Cuellar

Henry Cuellar, a Democrat, defeated James Hopson to become a member of the U.S. House of Representatives in 2004, representing the state's 28th Congressional district (map). He was born September 19, 1955, in Laredo, Texas. He is married to Imelda Cuellar and has two children. He holds a law degree and a doctorate from the University of Texas and is a graduate of the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University.

Prior to being elected to the United States House of Representatives, Cuellar was a lawmaker in the Texas House from 1987-2001, and was Texas secretary of state in 2001. Before turning to politics, Cuellar was a lawyer and owned a private trade firm.

In 2002, Cuellar gave Republican 23rd District Representative Henry Bonilla his closest contest ever, losing by only two percentage points. He was planning to challenge Bonilla again in 2004, but redistricting engineered by Tom DeLay shifted Laredo from the 23rd to the more reliably Democratic 28th district. After a hotly contested primary, Cuellar defeated incumbent Democrat Ciro Rodriguez. The district was so heavily Democratic that his victory in November was a foregone conclusion.

Cuellar's election to the House in 2004 was a standout for Democrats in a year in which Republicans gained seats in both chambers of the United States Congress. But he may not be embraced with open arms by his Democratic compatriots, as he endorsed George W. Bush for president in 2000.

Cuellar describes himself as a "moderate conservative" and has signaled an interest in joining the Blue Dog Coalition of Democrats on Capitol Hill.

External link

• Campaign Web site