Remember her? Back in May, Dallas area hair salon owner Shelley Luther became the face of pandemic lockdown oppression when she actually went to jail for daring to operate her small business against executive orders from the state.
Luther, who needed to work in order to feed her family and pay her employees, continued to operate while maintaining mask-wearing rules, increasing sanitation standards, and social distancing when possible. But to the judge in that case, Luther was in contempt of executive orders and needed to be made an example of.
Luther gained celebrity when a video of her in court with Judge Eric Moye went from stunning to defiant within a matter of moments. Moye called the working mother "selfish," demanded Luther apologize immediately to the court, and close her salon at once or serve one week in jail and be subjected to a $7,500 fine. Luther's response caught the attention of the entire country.
"I have to disagree with you, sir, when you say that I am selfish because feeding my kids is not selfish," Luther said. "I have hair stylists that are going hungry because they'd rather feed their kids. So sir, if you think the law is more important than kids being fed, then please go ahead with your decision. But I'm not going to shut the salon."
In a matter of a few days, America rallied around Luther and demanded her immediate release. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton as well as Gov. Greg Abbott also demanded that her sentence be ended at once. Abbott further decried that no one in violation of a lockdown order would be jailed.
Luther quickly went from an oppressed and targeted small business owner to the face of tyrannical lockdowns happening across the country. She traveled to Michigan after her own release to speak out on behalf of an elderly barber who had been targeted by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and her own Democrat henchmen in the state.
Though months have passed and the news cycle seems to have changed thousands of times, Luther has been busy putting her experience to work for the state of Texas. She even threw her hat in the ring as a Republican seeking a State Senate seat in a special election.
And it looks like Luther's ordeal and her obvious fortitude in the face of severe adversity is paying off as her once longshot chance of reaching public office has now put her up against only one other candidate. Following a six-way race last week to represent the Texas State Senate District 30, Luther finished with more votes than any other candidate with 22,135.
Constitutional Carry advocates in Texas have also rallied around Luther's candidacy, calling her the only true pro-gun candidate in the race. Lone Star Gun Rights described their position as obvious:
Passing Constitutional Carry in the 2021 legislative session will be no walk in the park. That’s why getting pro-Second Amendment champions elected is of the essence. Shelley Luther fits the bill and gun owners residing in Senate District 30 should not fall for establishment misinformation regarding her positions.
The special run-off election will decide who will replace Pat Fallon, who is now on the ballot for a U.S. Congressional seat to replace John Radcliffe, the Director of National Intelligence. Luther will face fellow Republican Drew Springer in the run-off, who received 21,971 votes in the special election.
A date has not yet been set for the run-off election but is expected to take place before or around the national election in November.