Texas Tribune Festival 2019

Valdez joined the Texas Observer as editor-in-chief in June 2019. Previously, she served as the editor of Wired and spent 10 years at Texas Monthly, holding positions including fact checker, columnist and editor. Valdez is also the author of “How to Be a Texan: The Manual,” which... Read More →

Kumar is the founding president and CEO of Voto Latino and an Emmy Award-nominated contributor to MSNBC. Under her leadership, Voto Latino has registered more than a quarter million voters to participate in national elections. Kumar also serves on the national boards of EMILY’s... Read More →

Morales is senior political director at Latino Decisions, an organization that conducts political opinion research. Previously, he worked at the Democratic Governors Association and served in positions under three different chairs of the Democratic National Committee, including as... Read More →

Padilla was elected as California’s secretary of state in 2014. Previously, he served in the California State Senate from 2006 to 2014, where he chaired the Energy, Utilities, and Communications Committee. He also served as president of the National Association of Latino Elected... Read More →

Rodriguez, D-Austin, has represented House District 51 since 2003. He sits on the Calendars,  State Affairs and Ways & Means committees. He also serves as co-founder and chair of the Texas House Farm-to-Table Caucus and policy chair of the Mexican American Legislative Caucus. Additionally... Read More →