Julian Castro

Julián Castro ( , ; (born September 16, 1974) is an American politician. He was the United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development from 2014 to 2017. Before that, Castro was the Mayor of San Antonio, Texas, from 2009 to 2014. He held that office for three terms.

In January 2019, Castro announced his campaign to run for President of the United States in the 2020 election. He ended his campaign in January 2020.

 Early life  
Julian Castro was born in San Antonio, Texas, to Maria "Rosie" Castro and Jessie Guzman. He is the identical twin brother of current United States Representative Joaquín Castro. His mother was a Chicana political activist who helped start the Chicano political party, La Raza Unida. She also ran for the San Antonio City Council in 1971, but she did not win. Castro once said, "My mother is probably the biggest reason that my brother and I are in public service. Growing up, she would take us to a lot of rallies and organizational meetings and other things that are very boring for an 8-, 9-, 10-year-old".

 Education 
Castro graduated from Thomas Jefferson High School in San Antonio in 1992. He had played football, basketball and tennis.  He got an offer to play tennis at Trinity University, an NCAA Division III school in his hometown. He decided instead to go to Stanford University. He graduated from Stanford in 1996 with a bachelor's degree in political science and communications.

Castro entered Harvard Law School in 1997 and graduated with a Juris Doctor degree in 2000.

 In Obama administration 
On May 22, 2014, the White House said that Castro had been nominated by President Barack Obama to be the next Secretary of Housing and Urban Development. He was approved by the Senate on July 9, 2014, by a vote of 71-26. He took office on July 28, 2014. After the announcement, Castro has been talked about as a possible 2016 Democratic Vice Presidential nominee.

On July 28, 2014, his first day in office, Castro was honored at a reception called "Celebrating Latino Cabinet Members". It was hosted by the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute.

2020 presidential run

On December 12, 2018, Castro formed an exploratory committee for a presidential bid in the 2020 election. Exactly one month later, Castro officially launched his presidential bid at a rally in San Antonio. His brother, Congressman Joaquin Castro, introduced him at the rally. He ended his campaign on January 2, 2020 following low polling numbers.

 References 

Category:1974 births
Category:American Roman Catholics
Category:Harvard University alumni
Category:2020 United States presidential candidates
Category:Living people
Category:Mayors of San Antonio
Category:Stanford University alumni
Category:Democratic Party (United States) politicians
Category:Twin people from the United States
Category:United States Secretaries of Housing and Urban Development
Category:Lawyers from San Antonio