While driving from Houston to the Texas Capitol to discuss bills over the legislative session, State Representative Jolanda Jones, (D- Houston) stopped at a Goodwill in Austin for a velvet blazer and paired it with flowy trousers, made by her personal drag queen designer. 

On the house floor, Jones and her fellow democratic State Representative Linda Garcia, (D- Mesquite) – dressed in a blue monochromatic pantsuit – use fashion to amplify their voice and confidently represent their districts.

“If you feel bold and powerful and happy because of your clothes, it just gives you an additional superpower where you have no distractions to fight for what’s most important to you,” Jones said. 

Jones said she’s not afraid to be authentically herself at work and always elevates her outfit with statement accessories–especially big feather earrings– contrary to the traditional pearls. Since the start of her term in 2022, she says that she defends her constituents who are under attack and her unique style pushes her to be confident as she leads through 2027. 

Although the first woman to wear pants on the U.S. Senate floor instead of strictly wearing long skirts and dresses occurred in 1969, it was still discouraged for women to do so. Since The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit after World War II, conforming to the status quo is embedded into the American work uniform.

Hillary Clinton, the 2016 Democratic presidential nominee,  is known for using fashion as a political statement. Gail Chovan, a University of Texas at Austin Textiles and Apparel professor and fashion designer, said that Clinton’s eccentric pantsuits helped show that she had a voice in office – one she was willing to risk and be outspoken.

“For so many of us, it’s either striking out as individuals or feeling as a part of the group by conforming,” Chovan said. “And maybe someone may feel like their voice is gonna be stronger than how they look and the other way around.”

Rep. Garcia said that before becoming an elected official in Jan. 2025, she primarily wore black. Now in the public eye through recorded sessions, she incorporates more vibrant colors and takes more into consideration than ever before while getting dressed. 

“I completely opened myself up to implementing pieces of my wardrobe and then it made it really fun,” Garcia said. “I’m getting to adopt new things that I would have never purchased before, like shirts with bow ties.”

She said she’s been into powder blue because it best represents her Democratic party and helps her step out of her styling comfort zone. 

“I really had to sit with not making fashion choices based on what other people thought, but me more so making fashion choices on what I felt, the level of respect that my constituents deserve to be represented by, and then also by respecting the history of the building,” Garcia said. 

Chovan, the fashion professor,  said that when she’s knowingly speaking to a majority of men, she doesn’t wear a suit for that reason. Instead, she’ll wear something that expresses who she is while showing that she should be taken seriously.

“Clothing is a silent form of communication,” Chovan said. “So, however we are looking at others and others are looking at us, there’s always communication there.”

Garcia, along with her partner and son, curate all her outfits for the entire week down to shoes and accessories every Saturday. They place the completed looks in garment bags and pack them in her car before she heads to Austin. 

In the beginning of the week, she said she wears her favorite high fashion outfit, like a skirt and blouse. By the end of the week, she’ll lean into casual Fridays with a more creative and personalized look, like an oversized pantsuit with a chain belt. 

“I want to make sure that I’m adding my own personal style which is more edgy,” Garcia said. “There’s always this juxtaposition of my outfit where there’s a really edgy piece that you wouldn’t normally pair with a very modest piece, giving a hint as to who I am.”

Rep. Jones said she creates her daily feng shui based on how she’s feeling day to day. She said she has no “go-to” Capitol pieces and makes her own unique clothes by upcycling fabric and learning to sew. 

Garcia says that as her fashion evolves, she said menswear remains a consistent part of her wardrobe. She said she tries to find balance between masculine and feminine aesthetics and sometimes she wears a full male outfit while embodying it with her feminine energy. 

Chovan said when she drives by the Capitol on the way to the University of Texas at Austin, she sees more women in trousers than skirts and dresses. She recommends a pair of trousers as a staple for working women.

“I hope that pushing the boundaries for women in business comes from within themselves as personal expression as opposed to an outright trend,” Chovan said. “A woman can find her power not because she’s dressing like a man, but also not going to the other extreme of ultra feminine.”

Even As dress code standards become more liberalized in recent years, Jones and Garcia continue to face criticism for their clothing. Jones said her advisors will steer her away from wearing things that make her stand out at the capitol–like her handmade hats–but she wears them anyway.

“I’m gonna be true to myself and I’m not gonna be so quick to try to be what other people want me to be,” Jones said. “If the worst thing you can say about me is that you don’t like how I dress, then I’ve lived a good life.”

Both representatives said they faced bullying in their childhood as young minority women. Growing up Latina, Garcia said she was poor and only had three outfits for school. 

Jones said she got teased for her black skin and coarse hair and felt ugly. Now, the representatives said that their Capitol fashion empowers them to stand up for their districts including minority girls facing the same traumas. 

“You can make anything fashionable,” Jones said. “If you walk boldly, with your shoulders back and you look people in their eye, you don’t have to be rich, you don’t have to have a lot of clothes, you just need to make sure that you’re neat and clean.”

Jones said that she “started the fashion caucus” at the Capitol with other representatives. Garcia said every morning over the 140-day session they complement each other on what they’re wearing and this has inspired women to see the fashion on the house floor. 

She added that in February a group of officials took a field trip to the outlets in Austin to shop. 

“I just hope that I continue to explore my style and just make sure I’m representing all the girls who enjoy fashion and can also be representatives, or politicians, or moms, or anything they want to be,” Garcia said.