In deep South Texas, where Republicans have spent two years foretelling a red tsunami, Tuesday night’s results brought something less imposing. A weak wave? A robust ripple? We’ll leave it to the oceanographers to decide.
Out of three key congressional races, the GOP notched one victory—in the district where they concentrated their gerrymandering energies back in 2021, creating a seat that Trump would have carried by 3 points the year prior. On Tuesday, second-time GOP hopeful Monica De La Cruz defeated Democrat Michelle Vallejo by 9 points in the race to represent the McAllen-based Congressional District 15. De La Cruz kept a laserlike focus on border security in her campaign and significantly outraised her opponent. Vallejo, a progressive who was backed by U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders, was given short shrift by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee in the election’s final days. Far South Texas has long been one-party Democratic territory: De La Cruz will now likely be the second Republican to represent Texas’ Rio Grande Valley since Reconstruction.
“If there was ever any doubt, let it be known tonight—from the land of Juan Seguín, Selena Quintanilla, and the World Series champions Houston Astros—that El Sueño Americano is alive and well in South Texas,” said De La Cruz in a victory statement. “I will fight for all South Texans—be they black, white, Latino, or Asian; Republicans or Democrats; gay or straight.”
