Washington (AFP) – Wendy Davis, a Texas Democrat who rose to fame after an 11-hour long filibuster to block strict state anti-abortion measures, announced Monday a bid for the US Congress.
Davis was so famous after her epic 2013 filibuster in the Texas state capitol that she ran for governor the following year — and lost badly to Republican Greg Abbott.
This time however Davis will run for a congressional seat represented by Republican Chip Roy, who was narrowly elected in 2018.
The district encompasses parts of the cities of Austin and San Antonio.
“I’m running for Congress because people’s voices are still being silenced,” Davis said in a video launching her campaign posted on Twitter.
“I’m running for our children and grandchildren so they can live and love and fight for change themselves,” she said.
Davis, now 56, was a teenage mother who made her way into Harvard Law School. She had a seat on the Fort Worth City Council before her election to the Texas state senate.
Davis donned her pink running shoes to stand and talk for more than 11 hours — following rules that prohibited her from sitting down, eating a snack or even leaning on her desk — in her famous 2013 filibuster.
At the time, amid loud and unruly protests, she succeeded in thwarting passage of a measure that banned abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy, and imposed strict regulations that would force most of the state’s abortion clinics to shutter.
The bill however was reintroduced by then governor Rick Perry during a special session later in the month and was approved.
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