The Right Woman for the Job
With the reelection of Trump and an all-out assault on Texans by Abbott, Patrick, and Paxton, it has never been more critical for Texas Democrats to build power and fight back.
Lillie knows how to win and has proven it for years, making her the right choice for
Texas Democratic Party Chair.
Meet Lillie
Hi! I’m Lillie, a 7th-generation Texan and native Houstonian, who is proud to call Texas my home. I was born a Democrat, and I’ll die a Democrat. It’s in my DNA.
At the age when most kids are playing sports and doing normal kid activities, I was out greeting voters at poll sites. I’ve spent my life fighting to elect Democrats at every level so that we can help people live lives of dignity, no matter who they are or where they come from.
I’m ready to lead and put in the hard work it takes to move our party forward. Together, with a clear vision and the right strategy, we can accomplish anything.
Lillie's Experience
Lillie Schechter has been a Democrat for as long as she has known what one is. She has spent the last two decades successfully winning campaigns, growing organizations, leading diverse coalitions, and training the next generation of progressive leaders.
Lillie has worked for years with people from every corner of the Democratic Party: hardworking grassroots volunteers, candidates, electeds, donors, and allied organizations in labor and progressive advocacy.
From 2016-2020, she chaired the Harris County Democratic Party, leading the largest county party in the State of Texas to win every county-wide race both cycles and cement a Democratic majority for the first time in decades. Lillie’s work drove the ascent of County Judge Lina Hidalgo, secured the election of nineteen Black women to the judicial bench, and flipped longtime Republican held seats such as TX-07 and HD-135. Harris County also saw an unprecedented spike in volunteer participation, an increase in donors, and a record number of precinct chairs.
As chair of the Texas Democratic Party, Lillie will work tirelessly to bring that same success to the entire state of Texas.
Lillie's Plan
Rebuild Trust by Changing the Culture and Mindset of the Party
From Orange to El Paso and from Perryton to Matamoros, the Texas Democratic Party must be active and ready to compete in every corner of the state. To make that happen, we must recognize that the Democratic Party isn’t just a handful of donors, elected officials, or even staff, crucial though they may be. The Democratic Party is an active community that belongs to all Texans–a majority, I believe–who share our values and aims. They must see themselves in the party and feel a sense of belonging in it and ownership of it. TDP’s strategy cannot be delivered top-down, command-and-control out of a headquarters in Austin. Every county is different, and will need to hone its own approach to win elections. We must use the strengths of everyone we work with by collaborating with party chairs, SDECs, and allied organizations throughout the state to create expansive, winning coalitions.
Complete a 360° Evaluation of the Party Infrastructure
Texas Democrats have not won statewide since Bob Bullock was re-elected lieutenant governor in 1994. If you're a Texas voter under 50, you've never cast a vote for a winning statewide Texas Democrat—and that describes about 55% of registered voters. It’s crystal clear: to achieve our mission as a party, we’re going to need to make some changes. If we aren’t honest about where we are starting from, we can’t get where we’re going. As Democrats, we owe it to ourselves and to the people we are fighting for to complete a total reevaluation of our state party: messaging, fundraising, relational organizing, training, hiring, field work, and all other critical functions. My first act as Chair will be a deep, qualitative research initiative into where we are now and how we achieve our mission of turning Texas blue. We’ll keep what’s working, change what isn’t, and create the strongest state party ever built.
Grow Our Warchest
The state party is facing significant debt, and we need money to build the critical infrastructure that will fuel us to victory. I have worked with donor collectives across the state, and driven fundraising strategy for some of our most successful statewide fundraising efforts as Texas Democrats. As the most experienced and most proven fundraiser in the race, I am confident I can deliver what county parties, clubs, and state-level leadership need to organize our communities, fight back against the Republicans, and elect Democrats all over Texas.
Build Power in Texas By 2030
Texas Democrats MUST develop a comprehensive strategy to win at every level and build lasting power by 2030, when district lines are redrawn for the Texas House and Senate. While it is critical to win seats along the way, 2030 represents the pivotal target date when Democrats must be ready to take long term power so we can establish a winning coalition in the Lonestar State for generations to come. If we want to do that, we have to start NOW by building a bench for 2026 and training and recruiting strong candidates who know their communities for every seat in every election. Whether it’s precinct chair, school board, state house, or statewide offices, we’ll start strong and finish the decade even stronger.
SUPPORTERS
Delilah Agho-Otoghile
Former Executive Director
Harris County Democratic Party
Linda Barton
Precinct Chair
Harris County
Lesley Briones
County Commissioner
Harris County
Melony Candler Little
Director of Integrated Behavioral Health
Legacy Community Health
Greg Casar
United States Representative
CD 35
Mario Castillo
Houston City Council Member
District H
Larissa Charles
Former SDEC Member
Roy Cohen
Human
Democrat
Dolores Colunga-Stawitz
Molly Cook
State Senator
SD 15
Susan Criss
Committeewoman
SDEC CD 31
Jerry Davis
Former Houston City Council Member
Mike Doyle
Chair
Harris County Democratic Party
Micah Erfan
SDEC Member
CD 7
Jonathan Fombonne
Deputy County Attorney/First Assistant
Harris County Attorney's Office
Mary Anne Friedrich
Precinct Chair
Harris County
Maricarmen Garza
Chief Counsel
ABA
James Graf
CEO
Graf Acquisition Corp.
Laura Hernandez Holmes
Former Texas State Director
Harris Walz Campaign
Lina Hidalgo
County Judge
Harris County
Krista Hollis
Brad Hunt
Student
YDSA, Texas State University Chapter
Jasmine Khademakbari
SDEC Member
CD 7
Katharine Ligon
Community Advocate
Wayne Lord
President
Plumbers Local 68
Andrea Luttrell
Managing Director, Major Gifts
Teach For America
Joseph Madden
Precinct Chair
Silky Malik
PhD Candidate
University of Houston
Barry Mandel
Retired
Erik Manning
Community Activist
Christian Menefee
County Attorney
Harris County
Avalyn Mostyn
Student
Columbia University
Rick Noriega
Former State Representative
Adrian Ozuna
President
Southwest Democrats Club
Annette Ramirez
County Tax Assessor-Collector
Harris County
Ashleigh Rickertsen
President
Greater Height Democrats
Mary Lou Robertson
Lifetime Abilene Activist
Jon Rosenthal
State Representative
HD 135
Ruben A. Salazar
Precinct Chair
Harris County
Sue Schechter
Former HCDP Chair
Rebecca Shields
Precinct Chair
Harris County
Lenora Sorola-Pohlman
Former Vice Chair
Texas Democratic Party
Bien Tran
Former President
Asian-American Democrats of Texas
Jaclyn Uresti
Former Texas State Director
Hillary Clinton for President Campaign
Holly Maria Flynn Vilaseca
Former HISD School Board Member &
METRO Houston Board of Directors
Melissa Vivanco
Former Political Engagement Chair
HRC Board of Governors
DJ Ybarra
Former Executive Director
Harris County Democratic Party
Christian Alexander
Civic Engagement Leader
Fredi Bleeker Franks
Retired
UTHSC
Kathy Caldwell
Retired Health Care Executive
Zeph Capo
President
Texas AFT
Joe Cascino
Former Texas College Democrats President
Belinda Castro
Vice Chair
Harris County Tejano Democrats
John Cobarruvias
Community Activist
Mike Collier
Former Democratic Lt. Governor Nominee
Edward Conley
Former County Chair
Taylor County
Kara Cook-Schultz
Community Activist
Carl Davis
Former Vice Chair
Texas Democratic Party
Lindsey Dion
Attorney in Gonzales County
Anthony Elmo
Director of Political Organizing
Texas AFT
CJ Farley
President
RTS
Kat Franco
Voter Protection Attorney
Sylvia Garcia
United States Representative
CD 29
Vicente Gonzalez
United States Representative
CD 34
Jennifer Halvorson
President
Area 5 Democrats
Dawson Hicks
Activist
The Texas Moderate Democratic Caucus
Kevin Hoffman
Former Precinct Chair
Harris County Democratic Party
John Humphries
Presiding Judge
Harris County Elections, HCDP
Karen Kaufman
Karen Lee
Owner
Karen Lee & Company
Logan Linder
Local Advocate
Ana Luke
Precinct Chair
Harris County
Brandon Mack
Community Activist
Marc Malacoff
Precinct Chair
Harris County
Jay Malone
Treasurer
Katy Jewett Memorial Training Fund
Neal Manne
Partner
Susman Godfrey LLP
Dexter McCoy
County Commissioner
Fort Bend
Amber Mostyn
Former SDEC Member
Rufi Natarajan
Precinct Chair
Harris County
Clare Olumba-Welsh
Mother
Democrats
Annise Parker
Former Mayor of Houston
Courtney Richard
Seth Riklin
Renewable Energy Executive
Jose Rodriguez
Texas State Senator (Ret.) El Paso
Rose Salas
DNC Member
Francisco Sanchez
Former Associate Administrator
U.S. Small Businesses Administration
Justin Schwartz
Sarah Slamen
Campaign Manager, Congresswoman Julie Johnson
Dallas County
Barbara Stalder
Former Judge
Bruce L. Turner
Treasurer
Christian Menefee Campaign
Celina Vasquez
DNC Member
Erik Vidor
Activist, Consultant, Girl Dad
Harris County
Gene Wu
State Representative
HD 137