Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-Texas) has ended his reelection bid in Texas’ 23rd Congressional District, withdrawing from a May 26 Republican runoff against gun-rights influencer and firearms maker Brandon Herrera after an affair scandal and mounting pressure from GOP leaders. Gonzales’ exit effectively makes Herrera the Republican nominee in the sprawling, border-heavy district.
Rep. Tony Gonzales said Thursday that he will not continue his campaign for another term, a decision that came after he failed to win a majority in Tuesday’s Republican primary and faced intensifying scrutiny over an admitted affair with a former staff member who later died by suicide.
The Associated Press and other outlets reported that Gonzales’ withdrawal means Brandon Herrera — a YouTube gun influencer and firearms manufacturer who brands himself as a gun-rights “absolutist” and is known online as “TheAKGuy” — is now positioned to become the Republican nominee without a runoff opponent. The runoff had been scheduled for May 26 under Texas election rules after no candidate cleared 50% in the multi-candidate primary.
Gonzales’ campaign troubles accelerated in recent weeks after the San Antonio Express-News published messages it said it obtained showing sexually explicit exchanges between Gonzales and Regina Ann Santos-Aviles, a former staffer. Gonzales later acknowledged what he called a “lapse in judgment” involving the relationship. Santos-Aviles died after setting herself on fire in 2025, according to reporting by the Express-News and local television station KSAT.
Separately, the House Ethics Committee announced earlier this week that it had opened an inquiry into Gonzales. Axios reported the committee’s move as Gonzales headed toward a runoff and as some Republicans publicly urged him to step aside.
Democrats have signaled they intend to use Herrera’s online footprint and past rhetoric as campaign material. Several outlets have previously documented criticism of Herrera over edgy jokes and provocative content, including posts that opponents say flirt with extremist imagery. However, the scope and political impact of those controversies remain unclear this early in the general-election campaign.
Texas’ 23rd District spans a long stretch of the U.S.-Mexico border and was redrawn in 2021 in a way that strengthened Republicans’ position, according to the Texas Tribune and other election analysts. Gonzales won the seat comfortably in 2024.
Republicans, for their part, have argued the district remains reliably GOP territory in a general election, even as Democrats point to the volatility of some Texas races and hope that a polarizing nominee could make the contest more competitive.
