# Erica Lee Carter

Erica Shelwyn Lee Carter (née Lee; born February 2, 1980) is an American politician from the Democratic Party who served as the U.S. representative for Texas's 18th congressional district from 2024 to 2025.
The daughter of U.S. Representative Sheila Jackson Lee, she worked as a teacher and quality coordinator before entering politics, serving on the Harris County Department of Education from 2013 to 2019. In 2016, she ran to replace State Representative Borris Miles but lost when precinct chairs selected Shawn Thierry. After her mother's death in 2024, she initially endorsed Sylvester Turner to succeed Jackson Lee in both the special and general elections. However, she later announced her candidacy for the special election to finish her mother’s term, with Turner, who ran in the general election, withdrawing and endorsing her.

## Early life and education

Erica Shelwyn Lee was born on February 2, 1980, to Sheila Jackson Lee, a lawyer and politician, and Elwyn Lee, a law professor. She has a brother, Jason Cornelius Bennett Lee. She graduated with honors from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with an undergraduate degree and later earned a Master of Public Policy from Duke University.

## Political career

Before running for office, she was a regional quality coordinator for a nonprofit public health organization and a teacher in the Houston Independent School District. She also served on a team that helped prepare a $21 billion education budget for New York Governor Eliot Spitzer. In 2011, Carter filed to run for the 1st precinct of the Harris County Department of Education, explaining that her decision to run was partly inspired by her family's involvement in public service. She went into a runoff with former Houston City Councilmember Jarvis Johnson, but voters were prevented from casting ballots due to a county error. She won the runoff and faced Republican Juliette Bartlett-Pack, whom she later defeated to become a trustee.
In 2016, she was a candidate to replace State Representative Borris Miles, who had been selected to replace Rodney Ellis in the Senate. However, she was defeated by Shawn Thierry when the precinct chairs voted for the replacement. She later became a policy analyst for Ellis.

## U.S. House of Representatives

On July 19, 2024, Sheila Jackson Lee died, leaving her congressional seat vacant. Texas Governor Greg Abbott announced that a special election to fill the seat would be held on Election Day. Former Houston mayor Sylvester Turner had been chosen as the Democratic Party's nominee for the elections, with Carter and her brother endorsing him. However, Carter received encouragement from the community to run, and days later, she confirmed that she would be running to complete her mother's term in Congress, with Turner withdrawing from the special election and endorsing her. The other candidate was former City Council member Amanda Edwards. Lee Carter won the seat on November 5, 2024, and was sworn in on November 12, 2024, representing the 18th district until January 3, 2025. She would serve as a member of the United States House Committee on the Judiciary.
Her successor Turner died unexpectedly on March 5, 2025, and Lee Carter was reported as a potential candidate for the special election. She declined, instead announcing that she would endorse and serve as campaign manager for Harris County Attorney Christian Menefee.

## Personal life

She married Roy L. Carter Jr. in November 2012 in Houston, with a reception attended by various Democratic politicians. She has two children who are twins, Ellison Bennett Carter and Roy Lee Carter III.