Enrique Roberto Cuellar (born September 19, 1955) is an American attorney and politician serving as the U.S. representative for since 2005. A member of the Democratic Party, he is considered one of the most conservative representatives in the Democratic caucus. His district extends from the Rio Grande to San Antonio's suburbs. , he was also the last Democrat to have held a statewide office in Texas. Cuellar served 14 years in the Texas House of Representatives before a brief stint as Texas secretary of state in 2001. He was first elected to Congress in 2004, after defeating the more liberal 28th district incumbent, Ciro Rodriguez, in the primary, and after a failed run for Congress in the neighboring 23rd district in 2002. Cuellar has survived multiple competitive primary races in recent years, most notably in 2020 and 2022. Early life and education Cuellar was born in Laredo, the county seat of Webb County in South Texas, where he has resided most of his life. His Mexican-American parents, Martin Siller Cuellar Sr. (1926–2019), and the former Odilia Perez (1928–2015), a native of Zapata, Texas, traveled as far north as Idaho each year doing migrant labor until Martin found work as a gardener and ranch manager. With eight children, the Cuellar family lived on Reynolds Street in the Las Lomas neighborhood of "The Heights" area of Laredo. His parents knew no English. They instilled a strong work ethic in their children. Cuellar is the oldest of his parents' children. His brother, Martin Jr., is the sheriff of Webb County, first elected in 2008 over the incumbent, Rick Flores. A sister, Rosie Cuellar-Castillo, is the Laredo municipal judge, having won a nonpartisan runoff election on December 11, 2010. Cuellar attended Buenos Aires Elementary School, where he became an avid reader and graduated in 1973 from J. W. Nixon High School. He received an associate of arts degree from Laredo Community College, then known as Laredo Junior College, where he later taught courses in government. He then attended the Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University and graduated cum laude with a Bachelor of Science in foreign service. He also earned a Master of Arts in international trade from Texas A&M International University, a juris doctor from the University of Texas School of Law and a PhD from the University of Texas at Austin. Early career Cuellar opened his own law firm in