Democrat Henry Cuellar will retain his seat in the U.S. House of Representatives after winning the election — his tenth — for Texas’ 28th Congressional District.
Cuellar, who has served in this position since 2005, defeated Republican challenger Cassy Garcia with 56.4% of the vote to Garcia’s 43.6% with just over 80% of precincts reporting.
Texas 28th Congressional District begins in San Antonio and extends to the border, encompassing portions of Hidalgo, Starr, Atascosa, Bexar, La Salle McMullen, Webb, Wilson, and Zapata counties.
Cuellar is a member of the House Appropriations Committee and is one of the most conservative members of the House Democratic caucus, advocating for strict border policies. He is also a staunch defender of Second Amendment gun rights and opposes abortion rights.
He narrowly defeated progressive Jessica Cisneros in the district’s Democratic primary. He did so by less than 300 votes after the House Democratic leadership rallied around him in a runoff.
Garcia is a former staffer for Sen. Ted Cruz and ran on a platform of tougher border enforcement and claimed that Cuellar is a Washington insider who has lost his connection to the constituents he represents.
The 28th District was targeted by GOP political strategists hoping for a red wave among Latino voters.
In recent days, Cuellar’s campaign was given an eleventh-hour boost when former President Bill Clinton stumped for him in Laredo.
Cuellar has entrenched name recognition in District 28. He served 14 years in the Texas House of Representatives. Before that, he had a brief stint as the Texas secretary of state in 2001 under former Gov. Rick Perry.
Cuellar has spent much of his political career as something of a good-faith broker between the U.S. and Mexico in areas of trade and transportation.
