A couple of weeks ago, we looked at the worst Democrat in the Texas legislature, John Whitmire. Today, let’s take a look at the progressive candidate running to replace him in the state Senate, Karthik Soora, who we invited to write a guest post. If you like what he has to say, please consider contributing to his campaign here.
Unlocking the Texas Dream for All: Why We Need Real Reform Now
-by Karthik Soora
When I began my career as an AP/Pre-AP Chemistry teacher at Eastwood Academy in the Houston Independent School District (HISD), where over 90% of students qualified for free and reduced lunch, I became acutely aware of an absolutely wild statistical reality: just 8% of low-income students in HISD graduate college, much lower than their higher-income peers.
The students I worked with weren’t statistics— they were kids full of ideas and aspirations for a better future, one that increasingly seemed out of reach. My students, despite being faced with overwhelming odds, were determined and hardworking, driven by the desire to be the first in their families to attend college. But the system was stacked against them. It was a sobering realization that the Texas Dream they had been promised was slipping away. Despite their hard work and countless hours put in after school and on weekends, the pathway to opportunity seemed to be a mirage.
Their affluent peers attended schools with budgets significantly larger than theirs, enjoyed enrichment opportunities during the summer, and were generally insulated from the harsh realities that my students faced daily. My students grappled with issues such as destructive flooding spurred on by unchecked development, lack of access to quality healthcare or affordable housing, a minimum wage that hadn’t been raised in decades, underfunded college access programs, environmental racism, and the ever-present threat of gun violence.
While I worked with others to create Emerge, an organization that has enabled over 1,500 students to graduate from top-tier universities, I couldn't ignore the glaring truth: our Texas legislature and Governor were letting the Texas Dream crumble for too many students.
Now, as I witness this legislature and Governor Greg Abbott fail to fix ERCOT and react grossly inadequately to repeated mass shootings, I am tired of this Governor’s failures and his endless deluge of bigotry and bullshit. Abbott's autocratic takeover of HISD, despite our board being democratically elected, and his attempts to overturn elections in Harris County are pushing the state towards the end of democracy in Texas.
I've come to realize that we can't achieve equality of opportunity for my students and countless hardworking Texans until we confront the fundamentally broken system that governs us. Many politicians talk about change, but few are willing to propose and fight for innovative reforms that can truly transform a broken system.
As a millennial clean energy developer and former public school teacher, I'm running to uproot this corrupt system in Austin and usher in real reform that expands political voice and choice in Texas. Our democracy and fundamental freedoms are under siege by MAGA Republicans and the ultra-wealthy who manipulate the rules to their advantage. Texans born in the 1980s have only a 50% chance of earning more than their parents did— and this is a direct result of the wealthiest 1% and corrupt politicians rigging the system.
In the past, Texas had a system that worked for the public good, with leaders like LBJ passing landmark legislation like the Civil Rights Act, Medicare, Medicaid, and the Immigration and Nationality Act. But today, our legislature panders to wealthy special interests. It’s a place where politicians can legally accept unlimited cash “contributions,” use campaign funds for personal luxuries, like renting BMWs or buying Rockets tickets, and serve as lobbyists for the very corporations they’re suppose to regulate, while also holding office. The time for change is now. The first step is to unrig our system— ban legislators from serving as lobbyists, stop billionaires from buying our elections, and protect our voting rights.
The next step is reviving and fortifying our democracy with bold reforms in the 9th largest economy in the world is the key to unlocking progress on pressing issues like universal pre-K, universal gun background checks, and universal child care. That means pushing new ideas like letting voters register online! If you can pay your property taxes online and 43 other states let you register to vote online, why can’t this one? In 26 states, citizens can also put referendums on the ballot to turn ideas into law. If Arkansas can do it, why can’t Texas? Why can’t we put reproductive rights in the ballot? And finally, we have to move our democracy into the 21st century: that means real political reforms to give Texans more choice and more voice. You can go to the store and buy over 20 types of Oreos, but Texans are given only the two parties every election as serious options. Fusion voting, for example, can give voters a voice without feeling like their vote is wasted, yet the only major electoral laws being passed in Texas these days make it harder to vote. Is it any wonder why as a state, we have some of the lowest voter turnout in the nation?
Other states like Maine, Alaska, Nevada are experimenting with new ideas ranging from RCV to proportional representation, and Texas needs to consider them. Voters in Texas, especially Democrats, are calling for real change— and I’m stepping up to give voice to the rising generation of Texans who are sick of dysfunction and bigotry and ready for leaders who represent all of us and fight for a system with equal opportunity and a real Texas Dream for every Texan.
If you’re with us, I humbly ask for your support. Each volunteer signup, every donation, and every social media share makes a difference. In this people-powered campaign, it’s us vs the billionaires. And I know that if we work together, we can overcome the big money and show that the people’s voices can finally be heard in the halls of power in Austin. I would also be the first in clean energy in the legislature, one of the first Millennial Democrats in the State Senate, and the first AAPI in the State Senate.