Texas Tribune Festival 2019

Svitek covers politics for the Tribune and has served as editor of The Blast, the Tribune's subscription-only daily newsletter for political insiders. Previously, he worked for the Houston Chronicle’s Austin bureau and interned at The Chicago Tribune, The Washington Post, Huffington... Read More →

Bell, D-Houston, announced his run for the U.S. Senate in July, challenging current U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas. Previously, he served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 2003 to 2005, was a gubernatorial nominee in 2006 and ran for mayor of Houston in 2015. Bell also has... Read More →

Edwards is a Houston city councilwoman and a Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate, announcing her run for the seat currently held by Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, in July. During her time on the city council, she has led a number of initiatives, including the mayor’s Technology & Innovation... Read More →

Hegar announced her candidacy for U.S. Senate in April 2019, challenging U.S. Sen. John Cornyn. She is a retired Air Force officer and recipient of the Purple Heart. In 2012, she successfully sued the Department of Defense to repeal the Ground Combat Exclusion Policy, which prevented... Read More →

Tzintzún Ramirez is founder and executive director of Jolt Texas, a Latino civic advocacy and leadership organization. She announced her candidacy for U.S. Senate in August 2019. She is also a co-founder of the Workers Defense Project, a worker’s rights organization focusing on... Read More →

West, D-Dallas, has represented Senate District 23 since 1993. He serves as vice chair of the Senate Higher Education Committee and sits on the Education, Finance and Transportation committees. West was also appointed to serve on the Supreme Court of Texas Permanent Judicial Commission... Read More →