Democratic Congressman Greg Casar has officially announced that he will be running for reelection despite Republicans in Texas gerrymandering his district in an attempt to push him out of office. Instead of backing down, Casar is using this moment to remind voters what true progressive leadership looks like.
In his announcement video, Casar made it clear why Republican leaders like Donald Trump and Texas Governor Greg Abbott don’t want him in Congress:
“I didn’t start my career in the courtroom or the C-suite. I started it on Austin construction sites as a labor organizer fighting alongside workers for fair pay, union rights, and even something as basic as water breaks.”
Casar says those early battles taught him two lessons:
- When working people Black, white, Latino, immigrant, and native-born stand together, they win.
- When facing corrupt politicians and big corporations, you don’t roll over you fight back.
From his time on the Austin City Council, where he helped raise the minimum wage, expand affordable housing, and protect Planned Parenthood, to now serving in Congress, Casar has consistently delivered on progressive promises. He even rose to leadership in the Congressional Progressive Caucus, where he’s taking on Trump, billionaire special interests, and Republicans who slashed Medicaid by $1 trillion.
“I don’t take corporate PAC money. I don’t trade stocks. I’m fighting to get big money out of politics,” Casar emphasized, underscoring his independence from corporate influence.
But Republicans see Casar’s grassroots strength as a threat. The newly-drawn maps, pushed by Trump and Abbott, carve up districts to favor five new GOP seats while diluting the power of Democratic voters. Casar’s district was specifically merged with that of Congressman Lloyd Doggett—a move clearly designed to weaken progressive representation. While Doggett, 78, has announced he won’t seek reelection if the maps are upheld, Casar refuses to let Republicans silence his constituents.
On X, he wrote:
“Trump and Abbott just rammed through maps designed to kick people like me out of office. They don’t want me in Congress because they don’t want us to be heard. But we’re not going anywhere.”
Casar’s campaign pointed out that even under the new maps, the district still includes his home, 250,000 of his current constituents, and his old Austin City Council district making him a natural fit to continue representing the people.
As Casar put it passionately:
“I may not have millions in the bank or decades of connections, but what I do have is you and we’re not going anywhere.”
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