You are in right now Carrollton, Texas, which is divided
between three counties.
So each of the candidates we're going to ask to
make sure to make sure you say which county that
you're running in.
That is important in this area.
We're going to start tonight with our State House candidates,
but first I want to thank the people who organized
this event.
Judy Clay, who's in the back.
She is the master of ceremonies, teaching.
She's done so much.
Adam Coulter up here.
As the format is going to go, each of the
candidates have been given a certain time limit in which
to speak, and then we're going to ask them a
Thanksgiving based question that they must answer honestly and
they could not have prepared for.
So that's going to be exciting.
If you have questions for the candidates, we would like
if you could hold it to the end, but we
are going to try to build in some time here,
okay?
Tonight we're going to start with some candidates who are
not going to be speaking, but we do want to
introduce.
So if you are a candidate running for office who
isn't speaking tonight, can you stand up?
Tell us what position you're running for.
First up we have Denise.
Yes.
Let me speak in a few seconds before you start
it.
No, I want to say hello.
They told me to prepare three and a half minutes.
Now I've been trying to cut it down, y'all.
Okay, I have to talk fast.
My name is Dr.
Denise Wooten.
I'm a licensed psychologist.
I've been practicing for over 30 years.
I specialize in kids with autism and ADHD.
And I'm also now in my seventh year as a
community college professor, which I love.
I first ran for Texas HD 63, which is all
Denton County, last year in 2012.
My team and I made valiant efforts, in my opinion,
to try to make forward progress in that district
So we ended up achieving the sixth best losing
percentage in a red district in Texas, and we were
named the sixth most likely district to flip blue in
the next election cycle or two.
So I consider that we made progress.
And because I'm a human services provider, I'm prioritizing two
major key issues for this election cycle: public education and
health care.
That's the two things I know the most about.
So public education, which involves the preschool program for children
with disabilities, K-12, community college, that's supposed to be the
great equalizer of opportunity for people that are rich, so
that they can make advances in their life and have
a decent income.
Well, Texas is second in the amount of hunger due
to poverty we have.
So if we don't help our public education system, how
are they going to get out of poverty and be
able to feed their families?
So to me that's a hugely important issue.
Secondly, health care, especially mental health.
I went to a conference this past weekend.
I'm having to talk really quickly.
Texas is 50th, y'all, in the nation in
the amount of funding and services we have for mental
health.
So not only does that leave a ton of people
suffering, but all the things that get blamed on mental
health problems, including mass shootings and the poor delivery of
mental health care services, we can't fix that unless we
get more funding.
So I would very much appreciate your support and considering
me to be the representative that you want to send
down to Austin to work on behalf of people's lives.
My causes are public education and health care.
And again, I'm Dr
Janice Wooten.
Thank you.
We do have less time.
I thought you were kidding.
No, I was not kidding.
Hi, everybody.
My name's Cassandra Hernandez, and I am running to be
your next state representative for House District 115.
I'm a trial lawyer, but first and foremost, I'm a
community advocate.
And I've done a lot of work in Austin as
well as here locally with a lot of different organizations.
I had the opportunity to head up and I'm currently
the chairwoman of a statewide women's caucus.
And what I did is we put on a Texas
Ledge Academy and we showed women not only how bills
pass, but I was able to head up a lobby
and take our women to the Capitol and walk through
the halls and fight to get back our reproductive rights
and more importantly to stand up for Texas families, not
only for us individually, but for us to be able
to make decisions for our children with medical doctors.
I also had the opportunity this lunch session to go
and stand alongside one of my really good friends and
mentors, Representative Julie Johnson, and she uh was heading up
and pushing the bill, the Live Well Texas bill.
And I went with Texas Organizing Project in Sycabit, Texas
to stand alongside her and give her that support.
And unfortunately, it did not pass, but we will continue
to champion that for my dear friend Julie, of course.
And then as a everytown fellow, somebody who lost her
father to gun violence.
I can tell you that as somebody who has advocated
for common sense gun legislation for a very long time,
I will continue to champion that, and I will never
give up that fight that we desperately need to bring
here to the state of Texas.
I am a proud product of public education
And I know that there are so many in this
room who feel that way because I've seen a lot
of you at my public education town hall that we
put on, and I know that I couldn't wait until
November 2024 to stand up for our schools.
And so we took people here from House District 115,
Dallas County, and we took them to Austin to stand
shoulder to shoulder with public education advocates and tell Governor
Abbott that we are no to vouchers, that we are
for fully funding public education, taking care of our schools,
and setting up our future generation for success.
I have been working very hard locally as well in
Austin.
This has given me the experience as well as the
opportunities and reputation with my future colleagues, our amazing Dallas
Dallas delegation, as well as my ability to fundraise, and
all of these things are going to be very important
in making sure that I hit the ground running well
before I get sworn in.
And I hope that I'll have your support.
My website's www.cassandrafortexas.com.
Thank you so much.
I'm a representative here from the Scarlet Cornwallis campaign for
Texas House District 115 in Dallas County.
It's with great respect and a touch of regret that
I inform you Scarlett is ill and could not be
here tonight.
So she is sending, has entrusted me to convey her
message to you.
Um, I am not a candidate, so this is a
little nerve-wracking for me, so please bear with me.
But these are Scarlett's words for you all as House
District 115.
Scarlett holds a bachelor's degree in business administration and an
MBA, accolades that signify her commitment to education and expertise
in complex problem solving.
In her professional life, Scarlett manages multi-million dollar projects in
the world of cloud computing, balancing immense responsibility with strategic
foresight, a testament to the skills she plans to bring
to the Capitol.
At home, Scarlett Cornwallis is the pillar of her family
and the mother of five, yes, five children,
and she runs her home.
Her empathy for those managing careers alongside familial duties runs
deep.
And she is keenly aware from taking care of our
aging parents to understanding the struggles of families living paycheck
to paycheck.
Let's be clear.
In this election, no candidate comes with an office holder's
resume.
What sets us apart is our understanding of the real
world problems and our commitment to solving them.
Scarlett brings a unique perspective shaped by hands-on experience and
years of service as a devoted Democratic precinct chair and
a volunteer contributing to over 35 charitable organizations throughout North
Texas.
Scarlett's campaign is a beacon of integrity, free from the
influence of PACs or special interest groups.
Her only commitment is to you, the people of this
district.
She will never have to answer to big money.
Scarlett will only answer to the real voters in House
District 115.
Scarlett's integrity is unwavering and her vision is clear.
As your House of Representative, Scarlett aims to harness her
expertise to fortify our public education, secure our health care,
support common sense, gun safety, protect women's rights, and bolster
the local economy.
and Her vision is clear a Texas where every
family can thrive succeed.
So we ask you to stand with Scarlett Cornwallis to
volunteer, vote, and donate.
Thank you.
I'm running in House District 115, which is on the
Dallas County side of Carrollton.
I am proud to say, y'all, that I grew up
down the street here in Carrollton, and this is the
public library that my dad, who's here, used to take
me to.
So this is an incredible opportunity to be here as
a candidate.
It makes me a little bit teary-eyed.
I'm so proud to be a product of the Carrollton
Public Schools.
They gave me everything.
I have a lot of school teachers who are telling
me, Kate, I'm so proud of you for running for
office in this area.
And I say, y'all, it is because of you.
That is why I'm here, public schools here in Carrollton.
And with that foundation, I want to make sure our
public schools are safe and fully funded, y'all.
We are still in a fight with public for public.