Full History Of Henry Cuellar In Timeline From 1926

1926: Cuellar's Father is Born

In 1926, Martin Siller Cuellar Sr., Henry Cuellar's father, was born.

1928: Cuellar's Mother is Born

In 1928, Odilia Perez, Henry Cuellar's mother, was born.

September 19, 1955: Henry Cuellar is Born

On September 19, 1955, Enrique Roberto "Henry" Cuellar was born.

1966: Texas 23rd Congressional District Created

In 1966, the 23rd congressional district in Texas was created.

1973: Cuellar Graduates High School

In 1973, Henry Cuellar graduated from J.W. Nixon High School.

1981: Cuellar Opens Law Firm

In 1981, Henry Cuellar opened his own law firm in Laredo.

1983: Cuellar Becomes Licensed Customs Broker

In 1983, Henry Cuellar became a licensed customs broker.

1984: Cuellar Begins Teaching at Texas A&M International University

From 1984 to 1986 Henry Cuellar taught at Texas A&M International University as an adjunct professor of international commercial law.

1986: Cuellar Ends Teaching at Texas A&M International University

In 1986, Henry Cuellar ended his time teaching at Texas A&M International University as an adjunct professor of international commercial law.

1987: Cuellar's Tenure as Texas Representative Begins

In 1987, Henry Cuellar became a member of the Texas House of Representatives, representing Laredo.

1987: Cuellar's Texas House of Representatives Tenure Begins

In 1987, Henry Cuellar's 14 year tenure as a member of the Texas House of Representatives began.

2001: Cuellar Serves as Texas Secretary of State

In 2001, Henry Cuellar served as the Texas Secretary of State, becoming the most recent Democrat to hold statewide office in Texas, as of 2024.

2001: Cuellar Appointed Texas Secretary of State

In 2001, Henry Cuellar was appointed Secretary of State of Texas by Governor Rick Perry.

2001: Cuellar's Tenure as Texas Representative Ends

In 2001, Henry Cuellar's tenure as a member of the Texas House of Representatives ended.

2002: Cuellar Runs for Texas's 23rd Congressional District

In 2002, Henry Cuellar was the Democratic nominee for the House of Representatives in Texas's 23rd congressional district.

2003: Cuellar Challenges Ciro Rodriguez for the 28th District Nomination

In 2003, Henry Cuellar challenged Ciro Rodriguez for the Democratic nomination for the 28th congressional district, winning by 58 votes.

2004: Cuellar Elected to Congress

Henry Cuellar was first elected to Congress in 2004, defeating incumbent Ciro Rodriguez in a primary challenge.

2004: Cuellar Wins Election to the House

In 2004, Henry Cuellar won the election for the U.S. House of Representatives.

2005: Cuellar Begins Tenure as U.S. Representative

In 2005, Henry Cuellar began serving as the U.S. representative for Texas's 28th congressional district.

March 7, 2006: Cuellar Defeats Rodriguez in Democratic Primary

On March 7, 2006, Henry Cuellar defeated Ciro Rodriguez in the Democratic primary with 52% of the vote.

November 7, 2006: Election for Texas's Congressional Districts Held

On November 7, 2006, an election was held for Texas's congressional districts after the Supreme Court ruled the Texas Legislature had violated Latino voters' rights.

June 15, 2007: Endorses Hillary Clinton for President

On June 15, 2007, Cuellar endorsed Hillary Clinton for president in the 2008 election, citing her experience and toughness as qualities that would enable her to be effective from her first day in office.

March 4, 2008: Cuellar Wins Democratic Primary

Henry Cuellar was unopposed in the Democratic primary on March 4, 2008.

2008: Holds Fundraiser for Hillary Clinton

Cuellar held a fundraiser for Hillary Clinton in Laredo in 2008 that raised over $200,000 and was attended by former President Bill Clinton.

June 26, 2009: Votes for American Clean Energy and Security Act

On June 26, 2009, Cuellar voted with the House majority to pass the American Clean Energy and Security Act, also known as the cap and trade bill.

March 21, 2010: Votes for Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act

On March 21, 2010, Cuellar voted for the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, which passed the House by a vote of 219–212.

2010: Cuellar Wins Reelection

In 2010, Henry Cuellar won reelection to the House of Representatives.

2011: Authored Legislation to Honor Slain ICE Agent

In 2011, Cuellar authored and co-sponsored legislation seeking to honor slain ICE agent Jaime Zapata. The bill, focused on border security, aimed to increase cooperation among state, local, and federal law enforcement agencies during investigations of human and drug smuggling from Mexico.

2011: Delivers Federal Funding for Veterans Outpatient Clinic

In 2011, Cuellar secured federal funding to open a Veterans Administration outpatient clinic in Laredo, Texas, a project that was considered highly dependent on his support.

2012: Highlights Economic Ties Between US and Mexico

In 2012, Cuellar highlighted the strong economic ties between the U.S. and Mexico, which reached $500 billion in that year.

2013: Opposes Border Fence Along Rio Grande

In 2013, Cuellar reiterated his opposition to a border fence along the Rio Grande between the U.S. and Mexico, denouncing the inclusion of an amendment calling for additional fencing in the Senate immigration bill.

2014: Cuellar Runs Unopposed

In 2014, Henry Cuellar was unopposed in the Democratic primary and faced no Republican opposition in the general election for his House seat.

2015: Cuellar's Mother Passes Away

In 2015, Odilia Perez, Henry Cuellar's mother, passed away.

March 1, 2016: Democratic Primary Win

On March 1, 2016, Cuellar won the Democratic primary with 89.8% of the vote against former Republican congressional candidate William R. Hayward.

2018: General Election Win

Cuellar won the general election in November 2018 with 58.3% of the vote, defeating Republican nominee Sandra Whitten and Libertarian nominee Bekah Congdon.

2018: Controversy over Fired Pregnant Staffer

In 2018, Cuellar faced scrutiny for firing a pregnant staffer who requested parental leave and subsequently suffered a miscarriage. Court documents suggested he urged other staffers to help him discredit her.

2018: Unopposed in Democratic Primary and General Election Win

In 2018, Cuellar was unopposed in the Democratic primary and won the general election with 84.4% of the vote.

January 11, 2019: Justice Democrats Seek Primary Challenger

On January 11, 2019, the progressive organization Justice Democrats announced they were seeking a primary challenger against Cuellar in the upcoming Democratic primary.

July 13, 2019: Justice Democrats Endorse Jessica Cisneros

On July 13, 2019, the Justice Democrats organization announced their support for Jessica Cisneros, an immigration and human rights attorney, as a primary challenger against Cuellar.

2019: Cuellar's Father Passes Away

In 2019, Martin Siller Cuellar Sr., Henry Cuellar's father, passed away.

March 4, 2020: Democratic Primary Win

Cuellar defeated Jessica Cisneros in the Democratic primary on March 4, 2020, with 51.8% of the vote.

2020: Secures Funding to Combat COVID-19

In 2020, Cuellar secured $1.2 million in federal funding to support efforts to combat the COVID-19 pandemic in Webb County.

2020: Cuellar Survives Competitive Primary Race

In 2020, Henry Cuellar survived a competitive primary race for his seat in Congress.

2021: Instrumental in Passage of Bipartisan Infrastructure Deal

In 2021, Cuellar played a key role in the passage of the bipartisan infrastructure deal. He was one of nine moderate Democrats who threatened to boycott a procedural vote unless the House leadership allowed a vote on President Biden's Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. This effort led to the successful passage of the $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill.

2021: Votes Against Women's Health Protection Act

In 2021, Cuellar was the only Democrat to vote against the Women's Health Protection Act, which aimed to preserve access to abortion nationwide in response to the Texas Heartbeat Act that bans abortion after 6 weeks in Texas.

2021: Austin Proposition E Passes

In 2021, Proposition E in Austin, Texas passed, which would have adopted ranked-choice voting in the city, but did not go into effect, partially due to a non-legally binding opinion made by Cuellar during his time as Texas Secretary of State.

June 21, 2022: Runoff Election Win and Re-election

On June 21, 2022, the Associated Press called the runoff election in Cuellar's favor, securing his re-election. He won the runoff by a margin of 289 votes after a recount.

2022: Cuellar Survives Another Competitive Primary Race

In 2022, Henry Cuellar survived another competitive primary race for his seat in Congress.

August 2023: High Alignment with Biden's Positions

As of August 2023, Cuellar's voting record aligned with President Joe Biden's stated positions 96% of the time.

2023: Cuellar Works on Master's Degree

As of 2023, Henry Cuellar was finishing a master's in defense and strategic studies from Naval War College.

2023: Votes to Support Israel

In 2023, Cuellar voted to provide support to Israel following the Hamas attack.

2023: Announces Vote to Roll Back Environmental Regulations

In March 2023, Cuellar announced his intention to vote for rolling back environmental regulations within President Biden's Inflation Reduction Act, becoming one of only two Democrats to do so.

May 2024: Cuellar Indicted on Federal Charges

In early May 2024, Cuellar was indicted on money laundering, bribery, and conspiracy charges by a federal jury in Houston, Texas.

2024: Seeks Re-election, Receives Key Endorsements

As of 2024, Cuellar had not drawn any challengers for the election and received endorsements from key party leaders, including Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Whip Katherine Clark, and Democratic Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar, in a move seen as an effort to deter potential primary challenges.

2024: Receives Additional Key Endorsements

Cuellar received endorsements for his 2024 re-election bid from prominent figures such as former Speaker Nancy Pelosi, former Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, and Assistant Democratic Leader Jim Clyburn.

History of Henry Cuellar in Timeline