Texas Republican Congressman Tony Gonzales has stopped answering calls from voters in his district and cut back on his work after admitting to an affair with a married staff member who later killed herself.
Affair admission ends re-election bid
Regina Aviles served as Gonzales’ regional director from November 2021 until her death in September 2025. She doused herself with gasoline in her backyard in Uvalde, Texas, and set herself on fire.
The Daily Mail first reported the affair in October 2025, weeks after her suicide. In February 2026, Aviles’ husband released text messages that confirmed the relationship. Gonzales admitted to the affair the next day.
He had finished second in the March 3 primary. House Speaker Mike Johnson then called on him to drop out of the race. Gonzales canceled his re-election bid.
Republican candidate Brandon Herrera now faces Democrat Katy Padilla Stout in November. A recent Texas Tribune poll showed Herrera at 42 percent, Padilla Stout at 40 percent, and 18 percent undecided.
Gonzales stops answering calls from voters
As reported by The Daily Mail, people who live in Gonzales’ southern Texas district say he has gone quiet. He still shows up for votes in Congress and collects his $174,000 yearly salary, but he does not return messages or help with local issues.
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A fellow Texas Republican who asked not to be named said: “He’s a ghost now. He shows up to vote and that is it. Nobody hears from him otherwise.”
The Uvalde sheriff told the Daily Mail that a voter who had Gonzales’ personal cell phone number never heard back. Veterans in the small town west of San Antonio, where Gonzales once served as a Navy master chief, said they had not heard from him in weeks.
A woman in West Texas reached out for help on an issue and received no reply, so she contacted the local sheriff instead.
Brandon Herrera said multiple voters and local officials have called him because they cannot reach Gonzales.
“He’s a bit politically radioactive, so we need somebody who can step up and fill that role,” Herrera told the Daily Mail.
“If I can go out and advocate for the people of the district… it’s been a privilege to be able to start doing that,” he added.
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The district stretches nearly 800 miles along the US-Mexico border from San Antonio to El Paso. Gonzales is under investigation by the House Ethics Committee over the affair.
Why this matters
The district now has a congressman who votes in Washington but does not answer calls or handle casework at home. Voters say they are left waiting until the November election. Herrera has begun taking on some of those duties even though he does not hold the office yet. Gonzales remains in his seat until January 2027 unless he resigns.
