Valenzuela picks up another big endorsement

Candidate for Texas' 24th district and alum of this class Candace Valenzuela has picked up another big endorsement. Kamala Harris endorsed her today, saying "I'm so proud to endorse Candace Valenzuela for Congress in Texas’ 24th District. After growing up in a military family, beating the odds to become a first generation college graduate, and fighting for Texas students on the school board, Candace will be ready to lead on day one. She knows both the struggles and hopes of working and middle class families and will be a strong advocate for progressive change in Texas." This is good news for her campaign which has been picking up steam in the lead up to the July runoff election. Previously she has been endorsed by both Elizabeth Warren and Julian Castro. These endorsements are important, especially since Valenzuela has only fundraised about half as much as her opponent, Kim Olson. I am interested to see whether Valenzuela will go on the attack as it gets closer to the runoff election, as there is lots to attack Olson over. She was forced to retire from the military to avoid a court martial after an investigation turned up misconduct in Iraq. As the LA Times reported in 2006, “Pentagon investigators allege that while on active duty as one of the most powerful figures in Iraq, Olson established a U.S. branch of a South African security firm after helping it win more than $3 million in contracts to provide protection for senior U.S. and British officials, as well as for KBR, a subsidiary of Halliburton Co.”