Victor M. Morales (born November 15, 1949) is an American teacher who was the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

's nominee for the

1996 United States Senate election in Texas The 1996 United States Senate election in Texas was held on November 5, 1996. Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Phil Gramm won re-election to a third term. Major candidates Democratic * Victor Morales, Teacher, Navy veteran * John Bryant, I ...

in 1996. Morales was a 46-year-old

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...

veteran and

civics Civics is the study of the rights and obligations of citizens in society. The term derives from the Latin word ''civicus'', meaning "relating to a citizen". The term relates to behavior affecting other citizens, particularly in the context of u ...

teacher at Poteet High School in

Mesquite, Texas Mesquite is a suburban city located east of the city of Dallas, Texas, in the United States. Most of the city is located in Dallas County, though a small portion extends into Kaufman County. As of 2019 census estimates, the population was 140 ...

when his students dared him to run for Senate and he did.

Early life and education

Morales was born November 15, 1949, in

Racine, Wisconsin Racine ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Racine County, Wisconsin, United States. It is located on the shore of Lake Michigan at the mouth of the Root River. Racine is situated 22 miles (35 km) south of Milwaukee and approximately 60 ...

. He was in the navy 1970-72 and served in the Philippines and

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...

during the

. He graduated from

Texas A&I University Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by bo ...

in 1976. He was a city council member in

Crandall, Texas Crandall is a city in Kaufman County, Texas, United States. Its population was 3,860 in 2020. It is part of the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex. Crandall is named after Cornelius F. Crandall, who had previously founded Crandall, Indiana Geography ...

. He danced competitively.

Political career

Morales, who had never run for public office before, pulled a major upset in the primary by defeating three politicians: U.S. Congressman

John Wiley Bryant John Wiley Bryant (born February 22, 1947) is an American politician who represented Texas's 5th congressional district in the 98th to 104th U.S. Congress. Early life and education Bryant was born in Lake Jackson, Brazoria County, Texas. Fo ...

, U.S. Congressman

Jim Chapman Jim Chapman may refer to: * Jim Chapman (congressman) (born 1945), American businessman and politician ** Jim Chapman Lake, a lake in Texas named after the politician * Jim Chapman (footballer) (born 1965), Scottish footballer * Jim Chapman (Intern ...

, and former State Supreme Court litigator

John Odam John Will Odam (born May 19, 1943; died August 21, 2022) was an American lawyer, author, and politician from the U.S. state of Texas. He served as general counsel for the Harris County Attorney's Office. Biography Odam briefly served in the Unite ...

. He campaigned around the state in his

pickup truck A pickup truck or pickup is a light-duty truck that has an enclosed cabin, and a back end made up of a cargo bed that is enclosed by three low walls with no roof (this cargo bed back end sometimes consists of a tailgate and removable covering) ...

. His campaign slogan was "Porque no? or "Why Not?" His only previous political experience was a two-year term on the City Council of his hometown of

. In the March run-off, he defeated Bryant with 51% of the vote. He became the first minority candidate in Texas history to become a United States Senate nominee from either major party. Despite having no staff, raising only $15,000, and not accepting any special interest money he obtained 2.5 million votes.

Exit poll An election exit poll is a poll of voters taken immediately after they have exited the polling stations. A similar poll conducted before actual voters have voted is called an entrance poll. Pollsters – usually private companies working for n ...

s showed that Morales won

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

s' votes (79% to 19%) and

Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...

s (79% to 20%) respectively. Though Morales lost, his effort was an important moment for the Hispanic community. "It's just rejuvenated the community, paving the way for future candidates ... there's a lot of excitement because of what he was able to do."

References

External links

Annie "Mamá" Garcia
- Insurgent candidate for U.S. Senate in Texas in 2020 described by the Texas Tribune as "one fed-up mama" {{DEFAULTSORT:Morales, Victor 1949 births Candidates in the 1996 United States elections Hispanic and Latino American politicians People from Kaufman County, Texas United States Navy personnel of the Vietnam War United States Navy sailors Texas A&I University alumni Living people

Early life and education

Political career

See also

References

External links