Pamela Medina

Pamela Medina (Democratic Party) is a judge of the Harris County Probate Court No. 2 in Texas. She assumed office on January 1, 2023. Her current term ends on December 31, 2026.

Medina (Democratic Party) ran for election for judge of the Harris County Probate Court No. 2 in Texas. She won in the general election on November 8, 2022.

Medina completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. Click here to read the survey answers.

Biography

Pamela Medina was born in Houston, Texas. She earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Texas at Austin in 1995 and a law degree from the Texas Southern University, Thurgood Marshall School of Law in 2007. Her career experience includes working as an attorney in trusts and estates, law clerk with the 269th Civil District Court in Harris County, and teacher for students with special needs and bilingual/ESL students.

Medina had been affiliated with the following organizations:^[1]

Texas State Bar
Real Estate Probate and Trust Law and Hispanic Issues Section
State Bar Foundation, fellow
Texas Southern University Board of Regents
Houston Bar Association, board director
Mexican American Bar Association of Houston
Harris County Democratic Lawyers Association
Association of Women Attorneys
Houston Lawyers Association
Houston Estate and Financial Forum
Houston Hispanic Chamber of Commerce
Leadership Houston Class of XXXI; the University of Texas
Texas Exes
Texas Southern University Alumni Association
Houston Black American Democrats; League of Women Voters
Inspire Church, LGBTQ+ caucus

Elections

2022

Endorsements

To view Medina's endorsements in the 2022 election, please click here.

General election

General election for Harris County Probate Court No. 2

Pamela Medina defeated Sophia Mafrige in the general election for Harris County Probate Court No. 2 on November 8, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Pamela Medina (D)	51.5	543,032
	Submit photo	Sophia Mafrige (R)	48.5	510,834

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 1,053,866
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Harris County Probate Court No. 2

Pamela Medina defeated incumbent Michael Newman in the Democratic primary for Harris County Probate Court No. 2 on March 1, 2022.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Pamela Medina	64.9	92,940
	Michael Newman	35.1	50,236

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 143,176
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Harris County Probate Court No. 2

Sophia Mafrige advanced from the Republican primary for Harris County Probate Court No. 2 on March 1, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Submit photo	Sophia Mafrige	100.0	131,491

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 131,491
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Campaign themes

2022

Ballotpedia survey responses

Pamela Medina completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Medina's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

Expand all | Collapse all

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

Pamela Medina is a strict adherent to the rule of law and takes an unbiased approach to legal issues. Her intellect, demeanor and compassion are much needed in the probate court where the parties are often experiencing a difficult life event.

Pamela was licensed by the Texas Supreme Court in 2007. She is the owner of Medina Law Texas, PLLC, a minority and female-owned law firm, providing probate legal services, for decedents’ estates, trust drafting, guardianships, probate litigation and general civil litigation.

Pamela Medina began her legal career as a law clerk with the 269th Civil District Court in Harris County. Pamela Medina was Vice President at Cadence Bank, N.A., in their corporate trusts and estates asset management division and provided trust and estate administration and financial planning to middle to high-net-worth clients. Pamela Medina is a former teacher of students with special needs and bilingual education with HISD. Pamela Medina graduated from Thurgood Marshall School of Law, with honors and the University of Texas at Austin. Pamela Medina serves on the Boards of Texas Southern University, as Second Vice-Chair, and the Houston Bar Association where she Co-Chairs the Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Committee. Pamela Medina asks for your support and your vote as the qualified and compassionate candidate ready to make history as the first probate judge in Harris County to be Latina and bilingual.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

Pamela Medina has fourteen years of probate experience. She provided trust and estate administration and advice in the corporate side with Cadence Bank in their Trust and Estates Division, and then her private practice she provides her clients legal services in the areas of Probate, Guardianship, Trust Drafting, and Litigation. The majority of what a probate court hears is non litigation Probate, Guardianship and Trust matters, with the litigation involving the same legal areas. Pamela is poised with the requisite experience for those legal matters that will come before the court. She served as a law clerk in the 269th Civil District Court, where she drafted legal memoranda, legal research, conferred with the judge and attended hearings.
Pamela Medina is a strict adherent to the rule of law and takes an unbiased approach to legal issues. Her intellect, demeanor and compassion are much needed in the probate court where the parties are often experiencing a difficult life event.
Pamela Medina is a servant leader. She serves as a Board Member of the Houston Bar Association Board, where she also co-chairs the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committe which serves the three area law schools' students with paid internships at local law firms, and legal departments, as well as mentoring. She also serves as a Regent at the Texas Southern University Board, where she oversees with the other Regents, the over policy, budget accountability and mission of the school. Pamela was also a teacher for students with special needs in HISD.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

The judge's role is not of policy, but of adhering to the law as it is written, and applying it to the facts as they are presented.

But as an individual, I have a strong passion for a robust education system for our children and young adults. I also believe our elections should have a large and informed electorate for proper representation.

I believe all people should be afforded equal treatment and protection under our laws.

Who do you look up to? Whose example would you like to follow, and why?

Pamela Medina looks up to the late Barbara Jordan and Cokie Roberts. She believes both women are pillars in their respective professions. They exude confidence but maintain warmth and sensitivity that keeps them open to serving others, to new opportunities to learn and evolve. They speak at the highest level of intellect and learning and they engage their listeners because that is what is required to be leaders and the best in their respective fields. They are harbingers of the truth. Their sense of justice for all is paramount. They can bring you away from your own thinking with their argument and wit. Watching them do their craft is a lot like watching an artisan. Their talents are God-given. And we were fortunate to have lived in their time. What Pamela Medina wishes to emulate in their character and personalities, is what will make her a great judge and serve the people well.

What characteristics or principles are most important for an elected official?

Integrity. Strict adherence to the rule of law. Trustworthy. Listen with attention to detail. Fair treatment of all. Clear communication. Transparency. Empathy. Servant Leader. Willingness to learn. Mentor. Patient. Strong logic skills. Teambuilder. Being in the community and seeing what needs exist. Being prepared every day. Approachable. Teachable.

What legacy would you like to leave?

I would like to be remembered as someone who served the people in an honorable manner; mentored a new generation to be highly skilled and motivated; inspired others to act with civility, intelligence, and purpose.

What is the first historical event that happened in your lifetime that you remember? How old were you at the time?

When Pamela Medina was three and a half years old she marched with her parents over Crockett Bridge, downtown Houston, Texas. Her parents and many other parents were protesting unfair desegregation practices in Houston schools. The protest also lead to a strike where students were removed from the regular education schools and placed in the "Huelga" (Strike) Schools. There was news coverage and Pamela Medina's mother, Vera Vasquez, was interviewed by the news in front of her four brothers' elementary school. Eventually, the unfair policies were deemed illegal and removed. That win spurred the group of parents to create a special education center in our neighborhood to better support the students in their education. Pamela Medina attributes that as propelling many of her siblings and friends to do extremely well in school; many attained Bachelor's degrees and some have post-baccalaureate degrees. Pamela Medina is the first female in her family to have a law degree and a license to practice law. Pamela Medina's mother has an Associate's degree in Accounting from the University of Houston Downtown; she is the first female in her family to have a college degree. Pamela Medina's four brothers are graduates of the University of Texas at Austin and the University of Houston, and one holds a law degree from St. Mary's School of Law.

What is your favorite book? Why?

Louise Erdrich's novels are my current favorites, in particular, 'The Round House' and 'The Rose'. I collect her work. My favorite place to find her novels is at Half Price Books. She is from the Ojibwe tribe. Her stories are set in the modern-day but hail back to her ancestors. Her work has been characterized as magical realism. I attended one of her book readings and she eloquently and graciously declines such a genre. She affirms our lives are filled with real, but seemingly magical occurrences. Her stories are transcendent, but rather than her writing taking the reader into her stories, she takes the story inside the reader, thus changing the reader's perspective. After we chatted, she signed my book with, "Find your tribe and write your story."

How would you describe your legal philosophy?

The judge must maintain the integrity and order of this court by adhering to the rule of law, the judicial canons, maintaining proper court procedure, hearing and deciding matters assigned, and be prepared by reading all pleadings presented to the court on all matters. The judge must be fair and impartial in rulings, allow the litigants their time in court, and only apply the applicable law to the specific facts presented. The judge shall ensure fair treatment of all persons regardless of their background and ensure the same for other parties.

Have you ever been rated by a Bar Association? If so, what was the rating?

Yes, both the Association of Women Attorneys and the Mexican American Bar Association endorsed Pamela Medina in the Primary election over her opponent. Each candidate went through a rigorous screening process with a questionnaire and an interview with their respective endorsement screening committees. The organizations are comprised of attorneys and their questions inquire into each candidate's legal experience, educational background, judicial temperament, community and civic engagement, and future goals for this particular court.

Why are you running for this particular court seat?

Pamela Medina wishes to combine her passion and expertise in this area of the law with her passion to serve the great citizens of Harris County. Pamela Medina wishes to preside over Probate Court Number Two (2) with a strict adherence to the rule of law, an unbiased approach to the law and the litigants, fair treatment of the parties, and being prepared for the legal matters before her, by reading the pleadings submitted and the legal precedent related to those legal matters.
The probate court is a special court whereby most citizens will at some point be touched by this court system. The court presides over guardianships, estate administration, trust creation and appointments of trustees, mental health matters, and probate litigation involving the abovementioned legal matters. The judge serving the people of Harris County on the probate bench must be a qualified and compassionate person. Pamela Medina holds these qualities and has a proven record of such. As well, the court staff should be afforded a safe and fair work environment, and I embody the characteristics of transparency, open dialogue, warmth, and compassion. As your judge, Pamel Medina will continue to work on committees that engender networks between the courts, community resources, and the people in need and be intelligent in building networks and coalitions that support communicating legal resources to a broader audience.

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

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Candidate

Harris County Probate Court No. 2

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Footnotes

↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on July 18, 2022

[1] Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on July 18, 2022

[1]

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Pamela Medina

Contents

Biography

Elections

2022

Endorsements

General election

General election for Harris County Probate Court No. 2

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Harris County Probate Court No. 2

Republican primary election

Republican primary for Harris County Probate Court No. 2

Campaign themes

2022

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also

External links

Footnotes

Information about voting

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2026 Elections

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