Tony Gonzales drops out of 2026 race after admitting affair with late staffer
Texas Republican Rep. Tony Gonzales has withdrawn his 2026 reelection bid after admitting an affair with a former staffer who died by suicide last year. In a statement, he said he would not seek reelection but would complete his current term, citing deep reflection and the support of his family. The disclosure triggered an Ethics Committee investigation and followed public pressure from House GOP leadership to suspend his campaign. Previously released texts showed explicit exchanges with the former aide. Gonzales’ departure clears the way for brandon Herrera to become the Republican nominee for Texas’s 23rd District. He apologized, took responsibility, and said he had made amends with his wife, while Herrera thanked leadership and pledged to represent west Texas as the people deserve.
Rep. Tony Gonzales drops 2026 bid after admitting affair with late staffer
Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-TX) dropped his 2026 reelection bid on Thursday night, a day after he admitted he had an affair with his former staffer, who died by suicide last year.
“After deep reflection and with the support of my loving family, I have decided not to seek re-election while serving out the rest of this Congress with the same commitment I’ve always had to my district,” Gonzales said in a statement Thursday.
His decision comes after House Republican leadership put out a public statement Thursday calling on Gonzales to suspend his reelection campaign earlier in the day. Gonzales said in an interview Wednesday night that he had an affair with former aide Regina Santos-Aviles, despite repeatedly dodging questions on the affair from reporters and stating that “what you have seen are not all the facts.”
“I made a mistake, and I had a lapse in judgment,” Gonzales said Wednesday during a podcast interview. “I take full responsibility for those actions.”
He added that he has made amends with his wife and asked God to forgive him, “which He has.”
The Ethics Committee is investigating Gonzales over his affair with Santos-Aviles, announcing the probe one day after Gonzales was forced into a GOP primary runoff for his House seat.
Text messages released to the public last week showed the congressman sending sexually explicit text messages to Santos-Aviles, who was married at the time of the messages. Santos-Aviles died after setting herself on fire.
REP. TONY GONZALES ADMITS TO AFFAIR WITH STAFFER WHO DIED BY SUICIDE: ‘LAPSE IN JUDGMENT’
His departure from the race paves the way for GOP candidate Brandon Herrera to become the nominee and likely new congressman for Texas’s 23rd District. Herrera thanked House GOP leadership on Thursday for asking Gonzales to drop out of the race, saying his actions have “tarnished the office.”
“I’m looking forward to representing the district the way the people of West Texas have always deserved,” Herrera said in a post to X.
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