EL PASO, Texas (Border Report) — Election Day is less than two weeks away and a handful of border contests could determine who gains control of the U.S. House of Representatives.
Eleven congressional districts make up the U.S.-Mexico border from Brownsville, Texas, to San Diego. And while some of those districts appear to be a lock for incumbents — Democrats and Republicans — others have been described as toss-ups.
On this week’s episode of “Border Report Live,” host Chip Brewster and Border Report correspondents Julian Resendiz, Salvador Rivera and Sandra Sanchez discuss key House races and the issues driving voters to the polls.
Texas’ 34th Congressional District
Republican Mayra Flores represented Texas’ 34th Congressional District for about six months before losing to Democrat Vicente Gonzalez in the 2022 midterms. Flores had won a special election to replace Democrat Filemon Vela, who retired in early 2022. Gonzalez and Flores face off again to represent a district that includes Cameron County on the Gulf of Mexico and parts of Hidalgo County.
Texas’ 15th Congressional District
Before running in District 34, Gonzalez represented the neighboring District 15. When the Texas Legislature redrew the districts, his home ended up in District 34, where he ran and won in 2022. That left District 15, a sliver of Texas that stretches from the border city of McAllen to the outskirts of San Antonio, up for grabs.
Crossover endorsements preach ‘country over party’ in Texas Senate race
Republican Monica De La Cruz, who lost to Gonzalez in 2020, flipped the South Texas seat red in 2022 for the first time in history, and she wants to hang on to it again. She faces a repeat challenge from Democratic entrepreneur Michelle Vallejo. De La Cruz performed well in the red ranchlands to the north, but areas closer to the border, like Hidalgo County, favored Vallejo.
Texas’ 28th Congressional District
In Texas’ 28th Congressional District, Democratic Congressman Henry Cuellar hopes to secure an 11th term in Congress…