The Texas Tribune reports that state Sen. Leticia Van de Putte has a name identification issue.

She’s a Hispanic seeking to appeal to voters of similar ethnic persuasion. She doesn’t have a Hispanic name, however.

To counter that, she’s known to pepper her stump speeches while campaigning for Texas lieutenant governor with Spanish.

http://www.texastribune.org/2014/06/08/van-de-putte-surname-could-be-challenge-hispanics/

This is part of Van de Putte’s uphill climb to become the first Democratic lieutenant governor since Bob Bullock. Her foe in the November election is Republican state Sen. Dan Patrick, who defeated incumbent David Dewhurst in a bitter GOP runoff.

A candidate’s name is important in Texas politics. We’ve seen Hispanic candidates lose to less-qualified opponents simply because of their name. We occasionally see candidates appear on a ballot sporting famous — even legendary — Texas names. A guy named Sam Houston, for example, is running as a Democrat this year for state attorney general.

Van de Putte, though, wants to use her ethnicity to her advantage. With a large — and growing — Hispanic population voting overwhelmingly in her party’s favor, Van de Putte wants to mine that large reservoir of potential voters.

However, Van de Putte is walking a precarious tightrope. According to the Tribune: “In a recent interview, Van de Putte said it would be disrespectful to voters and Hispanics if she played up her heritage for political gain, and that she only intends to be genuine about her background despite perceptions of it being used as an outreach strategy.

“’It’s not a conscious effort to emphasize or play up my heritage,’ Van de Putte said. “It’s who I am.’”

What’s in a name? Plenty.