She grew up in El Paso, went all the way to Harvard for college, then came home to spend nearly two decades as a trial judge before becoming the second woman to lead the state's 8th Court of Appeals.
Salas-Mendoza earned her bachelor's degree in History and Literature from Harvard-Radcliffe College and her law degree from UCLA, then returned to El Paso. She was elected judge of the 120th District Court in 2006 and served there for 18 years before being elected Chief Justice of the Texas 8th Court of Appeals, taking office January 1, 2025. She is now running to keep that seat in 2026.
Judges aren't allowed to take sides on these values — it's against judicial ethics rules. The best clue to how a judge thinks is the party they run with.