The former Houston ISD superintendent was the first Black person to lead the Department of Education and helped launch the No Child Left Behind Act.

An unidentified woman sued Hamer two weeks ago, accusing him of sexually assaulting and harassing her before retaliating against her using his position at the powerful business group.

Some Democrats dismissed the Dallas congresswoman as too polarizing to capture the swing voters needed to win. Others said her turnout-over-persuasion approach is the recipe to break through.