Ebelardo “Abe” Lopez was born in La Mesa, Texas to a home mother maker and father who drove large trucks and farmed part time. Once graduating from high school in La Mesa, he was sent by his parents and the farmer his dad worked for to Texas Tech University in Lubbock to sign up for classes. He entered Texas Tech, left to join the military, then returned to finish his degree. Once finishing his degree in history and leaving a graduate program in history, he obtained a job as a probation officer in Amarillo, Texas. There, he was inspired to go to law school at George Washington University. Upon returning, Lopez worked in a privet practice then as an assistant DA. Lopez was asked by many to run for state district judge, which he did. He won several times from the late 1980s to 2008 as a Democrat in a heavily Republican region.