Texas state senator Wendy Davis begins a filibuster of a bill that would tighten regulations on abortion providers in Texas, on June 26, 2013, in Austin
A Texas state lawmaker who attracted national attention for her filibuster of antiabortion legislation this year has started telling Democrats she plans to run for governor in 2014, Politico reports and the Associated Press confirms.
(MORE: Wendy Davis Feels the Heat)
State senator Wendy Davis’ 11-hour filibuster of a measure restricting access to abortions brought her acclaim from pro-choice liberals and scorn from conservatives, including the derisive moniker “Abortion Barbie.” The bill eventually passed, but Davis became a powerful symbol of the left’s resistance in a Republican-led state, and state and national Democrats have been urging her to run for governor ever since.
Davis is scheduled to announce her intentions next week. Though she has not declared her candidacy, Davis tweeted out a fundraising request today in anticipation of “something big.”
If Davis runs, she will likely face Attorney General Greg Abbott, the presumptive Republican nominee, in Texas’ first gubernatorial race without an incumbent since 1990. Governor Rick Perry is not seeking re-election.
[Politico]