In Brief

The child of a migrant family, Solomon Ortiz was born in Robstown, Texas. He was elected to Congress in 1982 and has since served South Texas in the U.S. Congress. His enduring memories of his family's life from his early childhood lead him to view the questions of poverty, budget and health care through a prism of personal experience. He is a Democrat, conservative on social issues and progressive on fiscal policy.

A Lifetime of Service

At age 16, Ortiz' father died and he dropped out of school to help his mother pay the bills for their family and joined the Army shortly thereafter, where he got his GED.

He was posted to Verdun and Vitry Le Francois, France for his tour of duty, where he was assigned to the 61st Military Police Company, Criminal Investigation Office, a move that would color much of his future professional life.

When Ortiz returned to South Texas after his Army service, he ran for the office of County Constable in 1964, the last election year before the Voting Rights Act of 1965 abolished literacy tests and poll taxes.

Ortiz learned the fine art of South Texas politics at the county precinct level in Nueces County over the next 17 years, serving as Constable until 1968, when he successfully ran to serve on the County Commissioners Court. He served as County Commissioner until 1976, when he was elected Nueces County Sheriff. There he made a reputation as a tough, but fair lawman, a move that brought him back to law enforcement, his political trademark.

In the 1982 redistricting of Congressional District boundaries, a three judge Federal Panel created the 27th District of Texas, a new seat along the Gulf Coast of South Texas.

Ortiz ran for Congress on a platform of bringing jobs to South Texas and increasing the focus on access to education for South Texans, who live in an area of the country with traditionally high unemployment rates.

In Congress, Ortiz turned his love of law enforcement into a love of law-making. He was assigned to the House Armed Services Committee and the House Merchant Marine and Fisheries Committee (today, the House Resources Committee). Four military bases in the Coastal Bend area and the historic tug of war over water (and other natural resources in the American west) make these committee assignments uniquely suited to South Texas.

Ortiz has emerged in the past decade as an ambassador-without-portfolio, leading trade delegations repeatedly to the Pacific Rim and other countries to rustle up opportunities for industry to re-locate to South Texas - a move to bring jobs to the area.

Throughout his Congressional career, Ortiz has made a reputation as a fair-minded advocate who works easily with both Republicans and Democrats when making policy.

Ortiz remains one of the hardest-working Members of Congress, as a senior member of 2 important committees, co-chair of the Border Caucus, co-chair of both the House Depot Caucus and Naval Mine Warfare Caucus, and as Dean of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus and Texas House Democrats.