Susan Narvaiz doesn’t exactly fit the modern Republican profile.
The former San Marcos mayor – and current GOP nominee in U.S. District 35 – got pregnant and dropped out of high school at the age of 15 (she later earned her GED). Her son was born in a government-funded county hospital, and, after her first marriage ended in divorce, she raised him as a single mom, with the invaluable help of the federal government’s food stamps program. Ultimately, she managed to launch her own consulting business and establish a side career in municipal politics. She’s voted in four Democratic primaries and runoffs since moving to San Marcos in 1995, and has never been actively involved in the Republican Party.
When Narvaiz tells her story, it’s easy to imagine her delivering an “average-citizen” testimonial at the Democratic National Convention about how a compassionate government gave her a hand up, and enabled her to fulfill her dreams. Instead, she’ll spend the next four months trying to knock off Lloyd Doggett and put one more Congressional seat in the Republican column.
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