Political Career
As a student at the University of Texas at Austin in the late 1970s, Guerrero became interested in politics. At the age of twenty-one in 1979, she was elected president of the Young Democrats of Texas. In 1984, at the age of twenty-five, she became the second female Hispanic to be elected to the Texas House of Representatives. She defeated five male opponents in a then Anglo-but-Democratic-majority district. No Republican contested the seat despite the landslide victory that year of Ronald W. Reagan as U.S. President. Guerrero's district included parts of Central and East Austin.
In 1989, Guerrero was named among the "Top 10" legislators by Texas Monthly magazine. She was cited in Newsweek and USA Today and, having left the legislature, was awarded a speaking slot at the 1992 Democratic National Convention in New York City, which nominated Bill Clinton of Arkansas to oppose incumbent George Herbert Walker Bush of Texas. She was also executive director of the Texas Women's Political Caucus.
Read more about this topic: Lena Guerrero
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