Lupe Valdez

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Lupe Valdez is an American law enforcement official and the Sheriff of Dallas County, Texas. She is Texas's only female sheriff, as well as being one of only very few openly gay holders of that office.

1 Early life
2 Career
3 Election as Sheriff
4 External links

[edit] Early life

Born to migrant farm worker parents, she was raised in San Antonio as one of eight children. She started life working in the fields, but managed to pay her way through college, earning a Bachelor's degree in Business Administration. She then took a Master's degree in Criminology and Criminal Justice from the University of Texas at Arlington.

[edit] Career

Her law enforcement career began as a jailer, first in a county jail and then a federal prison. She then moved on to investigative roles as an agent of the General Services Administration, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and, finally, the U.S. Customs Service where she was a leader in the federal Counter Smuggling Initiative. With the creation of the Department of Homeland Security in 2002, she was made a Senior Agent, serving in that role until her election to the Sheriff's office in 2004.

[edit] Election as Sheriff

Valdez was elected as a Democrat to the Dallas County's Sheriff's office in November 2004. She was widely considered the underdog in her general election race against Republican Danny Chandler.

Chandler, a 30-year veteran of the Sheriff's Department, defeated incumbent Sheriff Jim Bowles in the Republican primary. Bowles, who was tainted by corruption allegations, had held the office for 20 years.

The general election saw Valdez beat Chandler by 51.3% to 48.7% - a margin of some 18,000 votes. The election, combined with the fact that Valdez is female, Hispanic and a lesbian, made national headlines and was even reported overseas.

As an openly gay candidate for public office, Valdez's campaign won the backing of the Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund. She was sworn in on January 1, 2005.

Valdez is a committed Christian, attending the pro-gay Metropolitan Community Church of Greater Dallas.