Julian Castro facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Julián Castro
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Official portrait, 2016
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| 16th United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development | |
| In office July 28, 2014 – January 20, 2017 |
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| President | Barack Obama |
| Deputy | Nani A. Coloretti |
| Preceded by | Shaun Donovan |
| Succeeded by | Ben Carson |
| 181st Mayor of San Antonio | |
| In office June 1, 2009 – July 22, 2014 |
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| Preceded by | Phil Hardberger |
| Succeeded by | Ivy Taylor |
| Member of the San Antonio City Council from the 7th district |
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| In office July 1, 2001 – July 1, 2005 |
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| Preceded by | Ed Garza |
| Succeeded by | Elena Guajardo |
| Personal details | |
| Born | September 16, 1974 San Antonio, Texas, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse |
Erica Lira
(m. 2007; div. 2022) |
| Children | 2 |
| Parent |
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| Relatives | Joaquin Castro (twin brother) |
| Education | Stanford University (BA) Harvard University (JD) |
| Signature |  |
Julián Castro (born September 16, 1974) is an American lawyer and politician. He is from San Antonio, Texas. He is a member of the Democratic Party.
Castro was the youngest person in President Obama's cabinet. He served as the 16th United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development from 2014 to 2017. Before that, he was the mayor of his hometown, San Antonio, Texas, from 2009 to 2014.
He was considered as a possible running mate for Hillary Clinton in the 2016 presidential election. Julián Castro is the twin brother of Congressman Joaquin Castro. In 2019, he started his campaign to become president in 2020. He stopped his campaign in January 2020 and supported Elizabeth Warren.
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Early Life and Family
Julián Castro was born in San Antonio, Texas. His mother is Maria "Rosie" Castro and his father is Jessie Guzman. He has an identical twin brother named Joaquin Castro. Joaquin is a U.S. Representative. Julián was born one minute before Joaquin.
His family has Mexican roots. His mother was a political activist. She helped start a political party called La Raza Unida. She also ran for the San Antonio City Council in 1971. Castro has said that his mother is a big reason why he and his brother chose to work in public service. His father, Jessie Guzman, was a math teacher and activist. His parents separated when Julián and Joaquin were eight years old.
Education
Castro went to Thomas Jefferson High School in San Antonio. He played football, basketball, and tennis there. He skipped his second year of high school and graduated in 1992. He chose to go to Stanford University with his twin brother Joaquin.
He graduated from Stanford in 1996 with a degree in political science and communications. He started thinking about politics while at Stanford. He and his brother ran for student senate and won. Castro believes that affirmative action helped him get into Stanford. He said it helped him and his brother succeed in college and law school. While in college, he worked as an intern at the White House for President Bill Clinton.
Castro then went to Harvard Law School in 1997. He earned his law degree in 2000. His brother also graduated from Harvard Law School with him. After law school, they both worked for a law firm. Later, they started their own law firm in 2005.
San Antonio City Council
In 2001, Castro was elected to the San Antonio City Council. He won with 61 percent of the votes. At 26 years old, he was the youngest city councilman in San Antonio's history. He represented District 7, which had about 115,000 people. Most of the people in his district were Hispanic. As a councilman, he opposed a large golf course and real estate project.
Mayor of San Antonio
Castro ran for mayor of San Antonio in 2005. He was expected to win, but he lost to Phil Hardberger by about 4,000 votes. After this, Castro started his own law practice.
He ran for mayor again in 2009 and won. He received 56.23 percent of the votes. He became the fifth Latino mayor in San Antonio's history. He was also the youngest mayor of a large American city. Castro was easily re-elected in 2011 and 2013.
In 2010, Castro started SA2020. This project helped the community create goals for San Antonio by the year 2020. SA2020 became a group that worked to make these goals happen. Castro also started Cafe College in 2010. It helps students in San Antonio get guidance for college. In 2012, he led an effort to expand pre-kindergarten education. He helped pass a $30 million sales tax to pay for this program.
In 2010, Castro was named a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum. Time magazine also put him on its "40 under 40" list of rising political stars.
Castro became well-known across the country in 2012. He was the first Hispanic person to give the main speech at a Democratic National Convention. After the 2012 elections, he turned down an offer to be the United States Secretary of Transportation. However, in 2014, he accepted President Barack Obama's offer to be the United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development. Castro resigned as mayor on July 22, 2014, to take his new job in Washington.
Secretary of Housing and Urban Development
On May 22, 2014, President Barack Obama announced that Castro would be the next Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The Senate approved his nomination on July 9, 2014. He took office on July 28, 2014. After this, people started talking about him as a possible vice presidential candidate for the Democratic Party in 2016.
On his first day in office, Castro was honored at a special event. This event celebrated Latino members of the President's Cabinet.
When he left office in 2017, Castro shared a list of HUD's achievements under his leadership. These included:
- Helping to make the housing market stable.
- Rebuilding communities after natural disasters.
- Making homes safer from lead paint.
- Working to make sure everyone has fair housing opportunities.
2016 Presidential Election
On October 15, 2015, Castro supported Hillary Clinton for president. Clinton said she would consider him for any role because he was so good. People talked more about Castro as a possible vice president for Clinton in early 2016. In July 2016, it was found that Castro had broken the Hatch Act. This law stops government workers from doing political campaigning in their official role. Castro admitted his mistake and worked to improve training on the Hatch Act.
Memoir
In October 2018, Castro published his book. It is called An Unlikely Journey: Waking Up from My American Dream.
2020 Presidential Campaign
| Julian Castro | |
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| Campaign | 2020 United States presidential election (Democratic primaries) |
| Candidate | Julián Castro 16th United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (2014–2017) Mayor of San Antonio, Texas (2009–2014) |
| Affiliation | Democratic Party |
| Announced | January 12, 2019 |
| Suspended | January 2, 2020 |
| Headquarters | San Antonio, Texas |
| Key people | Rep. Joaquin Castro (campaign chairman) Maya Rupert (campaign manager) Derek Eadon (deputy campaign manager) Jennifer Fiore (communications advisor) Scott Atlas (finance chairman) |
| Receipts | US$10,264,312.76 (12/31/2019) |
| Slogan | One Nation. One Destiny. |
In 2018, Castro visited New Hampshire, a state important for presidential elections. He said he would decide about running for president after the November 2018 elections. On December 12, 2018, he announced he was exploring a run. His brother Joaquin believed Julián would run for president.
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Castro officially announced his campaign for president on January 12, 2019. This was at a rally in San Antonio, Texas. His brother and mother introduced him. If elected, he would have been the first Hispanic or Latino president. He was also the first Texan to run in the 2020 race.
In his announcement, Castro talked about his policy ideas. These included:
- Medicare-For-All: A plan for everyone to have health insurance.
- Universal pre-kindergarten: Making sure all young children can go to pre-K.
- A path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants.
His performance in the first Democratic debate was praised. Many people thought he was a "breakout star."
During the third debate, Castro had a heated exchange with Joe Biden about healthcare. Castro questioned Biden's memory. Some people criticized Castro for this, calling it a "low blow" or "bullying." Many thought this moment hurt Castro's campaign. Castro has said he would not change how he acted.
Castro stopped his presidential campaign on January 2, 2020. He said in Spanish, "One day we'll win!" On January 6, 2020, Castro supported Elizabeth Warren for president.
After the Presidential Campaign
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On January 6, 2020, Castro supported Senator Elizabeth Warren for president. He gave a speech for her campaign in New York. Later, on June 2, 2020, he supported Joe Biden for president.
In September 2020, Castro started a weekly podcast called Our America with Julián Castro. It talks about America's past and future. In October 2020, he joined the board of directors for the Center for American Progress. This is a group that studies public policy.
On July 12, 2021, Castro became a political commentator for NBC News and MSNBC. In July 2024, Castro suggested that Joe Biden should withdraw from the 2024 United States presidential election.
Political Ideas
Economy
Castro believes in having "balanced budgets." He also supports raising the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour.
Trade
Castro supports rules for trade within the country and with other countries. He supported the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) when he was mayor. However, he also said that NAFTA should be changed to better protect workers and the environment.
Education
Castro supports universal pre-kindergarten. While he was mayor of San Antonio, he started a pre-kindergarten program for 4-year-olds. This program was paid for by higher local taxes. He also supports making the first two years of higher education (like community college) free.
Healthcare
Castro has called for Medicare for All, which means universal health care for everyone. He said he would consider raising taxes on companies and wealthy people to pay for it. He supports the Affordable Care Act. His campaign's healthcare plan includes a public option, which is a government-run health insurance plan.
Environment
Castro supports the Paris climate accord. This is an international agreement to fight climate change. He has criticized President Trump for leaving this agreement. When he was in office, Castro worked with companies to help them switch to renewable energy. He also supports a Green New Deal, which is a big plan to address climate change and create jobs.
Foreign Policy
Syria
Castro has supported slowly taking U.S. troops out of Syria. He has also criticized how President Trump handled this issue.
China
Castro supported the protesters in Hong Kong. He wrote that the United States should speak up for people who want democracy in Hong Kong. He believes the U.S. should not let its citizens be pressured by an authoritarian government.
Campaign Finance
Castro has said he would not take money from Political Action Committees (PACs) for his presidential campaign. He encouraged other candidates to do the same. He did form a PAC called Opportunity First in 2017. This PAC mostly covered his travel costs and gave money to young, progressive Democratic politicians.
Personal Life
In 2007, Castro married Erica Lira, who was an elementary school teacher. They divorced in 2022. They have a daughter, born in 2009, and a son, born in 2014.
Castro is Catholic. He did not grow up speaking Spanish, but he started learning it in 2010. He also studied Latin and Japanese in school.
