Shawn Nicole Thierry (born August 6, 1969) is an American politician from the state of Texas. She was appointed Judge of the 515th Civil District Court in Harris County on August 25, 2026 by Governor Greg Abbott. Thierry is a former member of Texas House of Representatives. She won the November 2016 general election and was sworn into office on January 10, 2017. She became nationally known for creating legislation with the goal of reducing maternal mortality and morbidity. Early life
Shawn Thierry was raised in Southwest Houston. She graduated from Howard University and Thurgood Marshall School of Law at Texas Southern University.
Positions
In April 2023, Thierry voted with Republicans in favor of HB 900, to ban books from public schools deemed "sexually explicit". The bill was heavily criticized by LGBT advocates for including books containing reference to LGBT topics in its definition of sexually explicit.
In May of that year, Thierry broke ranks with her party to vote in favor of a bill to ban gender affirming care for trans minors. She has also voted in favor of bans on trans women from women's sports.
On March 5, 2024, Thierry came in second in the primary elections to her challenger, Lauren Ashley Simmons, a progressive queer union organizer who ran in opposition to Thierry's anti-LGBT votes and activism, and was forced into a run-off. On August 30, 2024, Thierry officially announced that she would be leaving the Democratic Party and joining the Republican Party. Thierry further discussed her decision to leave the Democratic Party at the 2024 national summit for the right-wing group Moms for Liberty. Personal life Thierry is a practicing Catholic. Notes
References
External links State legislative page Shawn Thierry at the Texas Tribune