Meet Josh Reyna

Josh Reyna – A Lifelong Democrat Delivering for Texas Families

Josh Reyna is a sixth-generation Texan, Austin attorney, small business owner, and Chief of Staff & General Counsel in the Texas Senate with over 16 years of experience at the Texas Capitol. For nearly two decades, he has fought for Democratic priorities, stood up to MAGA extremism, and delivered real solutions for Texas families. Josh is running for Texas State House District 49 to strengthen our public schools, protect our neighborhoods, defend our rights, and build an economy and government that works for the middle class– not billionaires and special interests. At this pivotal moment, no other candidate has the experience to organize Democrats and defend our values in the Capitol on Day 1.  

Working his way through college, Josh graduated magna cum laude from St. Edward’s University with a business degree in accounting and then earned his law degree from the University of Texas School of Law. He began his journey at the Capitol as an intern in 2009 and worked his way up to Chief of Staff and General Counsel.

Josh has built a career turning progressive democratic values into action. He has written and passed legislation to expand access to safety-net services and healthcare for struggling families, keep Texans and kids safe with gun and school safety measures, grow the economy and support small businesses, protect the environment and advance clean energy, and improve educational opportunities for our kids and young adults. He has also stood shoulder-to-shoulder with Democratic lawmakers in the fights that matter most to Texas families including protecting our public schools against voucher scams, pushing back on extreme abortion laws, working for lower property taxes and healthcare costs, updating the power grid, and stopping the rigged redistricting scam that seeks to silence our voices.

Josh also knows it’s not enough to fight for our values in the legislature–progressives also have to build power by winning elections. That is why Josh has also managed numerous successful Democratic campaigns up and down the ballot. He’ll bring that same organizer energy to the job as State House Representative so Democrats can win more seats and pass real policy solutions. 

Josh has called Austin home for 20 years. It is the city where he met and married his wife, Larissa. Josh and Larissa are now raising their young son, Rome, in the Crestview neighborhood with their two dogs, Bear and Moose, and their cat, Meow. Josh and his family enjoy attending UT football games, exploring new restaurants, watching movies at the Drafthouse, and grilling in the backyard with family and friends.

Josh comes from a middle-class family that taught him the value of public service and perseverance. His grandfather fought fascism in World War II, returned home, joined a union (CWA- Communication Workers of America), and served on the local school board before passing away young. His grandma was left to raise his mom and her four siblings on her own with only a high school education. Through hard work and determination, they all graduated college and Josh’s mom became a lawyer and then a State District Judge.

That legacy of resilience and service instilled in Josh a deep belief that public service matters, and that government works best when it belongs to the people it serves and makes life better for all. Josh grew up knowing that public service isn’t just a job–it’s a calling. Drawing on a lifetime of public service and a proven record of results, Josh Reyna is ready to bring that fight to the Texas House, standing up for fairness, expanding opportunity, and ensuring every Texas family gets the respect and future they deserve.

Proven Experience at the Texas Capitol

Josh has built a career turning Democratic values into action. He has successfully managed Democratic campaigns at the local, state, and federal levels and helped craft and pass landmark legislation to:

• Protect the environment and advance clean energy: Strengthened greenhouse gas regulations, reduced flaring and air pollution from oil and gas operations, promoted renewable energy infrastructure, protected solar customers, and funded clean-up of hazardous leaking wells.
• Keep Texans safe: Passed the “Lie & Try” gun safety bill, advanced school safety reforms, and championed measures to keep pets and animals safe.
• Expand healthcare and mental health access: Increased access to healthcare and mental health services, extended community health worker programs, and strengthened safety-net services and healthcare for veterans and vulnerable populations.
• Empower working families: Expanded access to food stamps for working families, created family leave pools for government workers, bolstered the childcare workforce, and launched workforce development programs to help Texans find good paying jobs.
• Grow the economy and support small businesses: Revamped key economic development programs with stronger local hiring requirements, protected small businesses from cyberattacks with legal safe harbor, and created opportunities for youth entering the workforce.
• Strengthen justice and government accountability: Advanced criminal justice reform through the Office of Forensic Writs, addressed teacher shortages, and improved government efficiency.
• Deliver critical funding to communities in need: Helped underserved communities access billions of dollars in state funding to ensure hardworking families are not left behind.