Posted on 03/04/2026 7:08:47 AM PST by Miami Rebel
Scandal-embroiled Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-Texas) on Tuesday was forced into a runoff election after weeks of backlash to reports alleging he had an affair with a former staffer, who later took her own life.
He will face Brandon Herrera — a 2nd Amendment influencer who goes by “TheAKGuy” on social media — in late May. That sets them up for yet another expensive and prolonged contest like they experienced in 2024, when Gonzales prevailed by one percentage point.
Gonzales, who has represented the west Texas district since 2021, has faced calls to resign from several of his GOP colleagues after new evidence emerged of his alleged affair. Gonzales previously denied the affair and repeatedly said he would not step down.
Gonzales’ South Texas district favors Republicans, but could potentially become competitive should Hispanic voters sour on the GOP this cycle or stay home. Even with the scandal, House GOP leadership declined to rescind their endorsements of Gonzales and were content to wait and see how the voters decided.
“There’s a primary there in less than a week, these things will play out,” Speaker Mike Johnson said recently.
(Excerpt) Read more at politico.com ...
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Jim
I'd have figured he'd garner a high teens result at best.
Right after I posted this, I saw a NEW Politico headline:
“House Ethics panel launches investigation of Tony Gonzales”
!!!!!!
Gonzales continues to deny the allegations. We know that denials are often false (Clinton) but is there more evidence than the statements of the suicidal woman? Obviously there will have been opportunities and situations, but are there any receipts or ‘blue dresses’ or even witnesses? Just curious following from afar.
“’This is going too far’: Texas rep. appears to pursue staffer who died in explicit text messages”
There are creepy texts.
You’re not in Texas, are you?
They have the deceased wife’s emails. The husband turned them over. It’s pretty damning.
CC
“You’re not in Texas, are you?”
___________________________________
I’m an Okie and am close by. It’s just hard to keep track of all these Congresscritters and their individual shenanigans. Thanks for the additional info about the texts, guys.
BTW, I’d be inclined to vote for the guy that made his own rifles.
I think Gonzales’ involvement with the staffer was low-level rumor for most voters, until the text messages were made public. A lot of early voters didn’t have the opportunity to factor that in. Plus, Crockett’s loss on the Democrat side shows that she may not have prevented crossover voting, as many speculated.
right you are,
even if tony is 100% clean, this isn’t even a contest.
i’m old but i’m not afraid to admit that i learn more about guns because of him.
There are text messages both by him, and by her with others, which support the allegations.
Herrera will win.
Herrera in Congress would be worth the price of admission at any theme park in the country.
support Brandon Herrera if you can.
Tony Gonzales is RINO scum.
we need to defeat this one.
The ultimate proof of Gonzales having an affair with this staffer is if a V2 rocket falls near the scene of the event.
He would be an awesome representative, but looking at the primary numbers the Party of Satan had roughly 5 or 6 thousand more total votes than the Stupid Party. That’s not to say he can’t win the general, but it might be more difficult than we would like. Someone who has done a deeper dive may have a different opinion.
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