President of the Texas Civil Rights Project and Chair of the United States Commission on Civil Rights.

Rochelle Garza is an attorney from the Rio Grande Valley currently serving as President of the Texas Civil Rights Project. Under her leadership, TCRP has expanded its reach across Texas by protecting voting rights, fighting for immigrants' rights, and standing against overcriminalization through an intentional community lawyering model.

Rochelle also serves as Chair of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, steering the Commission through a period of heightened political pressure while preserving its independence, bipartisan integrity, and constitutional mandate as a federal civil rights watchdog.

In 2022, Rochelle became the Democratic nominee for Texas Attorney General. Her platform focused on voting rights, reproductive rights, and government accountability. She was the first Latina to be nominated in Texas history for Attorney General by any major party.

Rochelle is the daughter of public school teachers. At a young age, Rochelle learned firsthand how broken our healthcare system is. Her oldest brother, Robby, suffered a brain injury during childbirth and grew up with disabilities. Rochelle watched her parents advocate tirelessly to ensure Robby’s needs were met.

So, Rochelle became a lawyer for the people and built extensive experience in immigration, family, criminal, and constitutional law. She represented teens in federal immigration detention, resulting in the “Garza Notice” - a federal requirement that protects the reproductive rights of immigrant teens in detention.

Rochelle graduated from Brown University and the University of Houston Law Center. She lives with her husband, Adam, and their two young daughters in Brownsville, Texas.

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