AUSTIN (KXAN) — Presidential candidate Senator Elizabeth Warren is weighing in on a race in Travis County, backing a new district attorney over the incumbent Margaret Moore.
Tuesday morning, Warren announced she endorsed Jose Garza for the spot. Garza is the executive director of the non-profit, Workers Defense Project.
“With Jose as District Attorney, Travis County will gain another champion in the fight to transform our criminal justice system,” Warren released in a statement, “As an experienced public servant with a proven track record of standing up for working families, I know that Jose will be the fighter that Travis County communities deserve.”
The Austin American-Statesman was the first to report the news. Garza then confirmed the endorsement on Twitter.
“I am moved by all she has done to create structural change for working people, and [I’m] humbled to have her support,” he tweeted.
Moore was first elected in 2016.
“I have a lot of respect for Senator Warren but respectfully I’d point out she’s never come and talk to me. She doesn’t know the Travis County criminal justice system. I think that if you look at my list of supporters, the leaders in this community who know me and my work and the system here, you’ll get greater guidance for who should be the next district attorney for Travis County,” Moore told KXAN.
Moore has been endorsed by Austin Congressman Loyd Doggett and Austin Mayor Steve Adler.
The other candidate in the race, Erin Martinson, weighed in.
“While the mismanagement of the Travis County District Attorney’s Office has attracted national attention, national politicians and national money aren’t going to fix the problem. The solution will come from local residents making the best choice for our community. For the past twenty years, I’ve worked on behalf of women, families, and crime victims in Austin. That’s why so many of them asked me to step up and fix the problems caused by our current District Attorney’s stunning indifference,” Erin Martinson, a candidate for DA, told KXAN by phone.
