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Johnny Garcia has won the Democratic primary runoff for Texas’ 35th Congressional District, defeating Maureen Galindo in a race that became one of the most closely watched and volatile Democratic contests in Texas.
In the preliminary tally, Garcia won 60.5% of the vote compared to Galindo’s 39.5%
Garcia, a Bexar County sheriff’s deputy, now advances to the November general election to face off against Republican nominee Carlos De La Cruz, who beat State Rep. John Lujan on Tuesday.
Speaking Tuesday night after the race for called for Garcia, the San Antonio native said his victory was due in part to the community rejecting Galindo and her controversial statements.
"Once the community figured out what she stood for, to divide our communities, rather than focus on everyday issues affecting everyday Texans, I think the community clearly understood who the candidate was to ultimately represent not only our party, but our party's values," Garcia told TPR.
Galindo, a housing activist and sex therapist, had surprised many Democrats by finishing first in the March primary. But her runoff campaign was overtaken by controversy after Democratic leaders, Jewish organizations and members of Congress condemned comments she made about Israel, Zionists and Jews as antisemitic.
In one Instagram post, Galindo wrote that she wanted to turn the Karnes ICE Detention Center into a prison for “American Zionists and former ICE officers,” and said it would also be a “castration processing center” for pedophiles, adding that “probably most of the Zionists” would fall into that category.
Galindo denied being antisemitic and said her criticism was aimed at Zionism, not Judaism. The backlash united national and Texas Democrats behind Garcia.
In a text message to Texas Public Radio responding to the defeat, Galindo said:
"I feel like I won because of all the corruption my campaign exposed in the world and all the people we've inspired.
I'm also sad and deeply disturbed by the local media's role in thwarting this election through false & dangerous headlines, showing how 'yellow journalism' is a serious threat to the future of American democracy.
I look forward to continuing to create a better world with my community <3."
Garcia said he thinks affordability will be the main issue in his campaign against Republican De La Cruz.
"Families are not able to make it to HEB to buy their groceries. Families aren't able to pay their CPS and SAWS bills with the wages that they're bringing home. These are the issues that we're going to remain focused on," he said.
Garcia said Trump's endorsement of De La Cruz will be a turn-off for voters because "we have a president that's focused on ballrooms and not lowering costs."
The runoff also drew scrutiny because of outside spending by Lead Left PAC, a group that presented itself as anti-Trump while spending heavily to boost Galindo and other far left candidates.
Democrats and campaign-finance watchdogs raised questions about whether the group was part of a Republican-linked effort to elevate Democratic candidates seen as too polarizing to win a general election.
Garcia’s win gives Democrats the nominee many party leaders believed was more viable in November.
The district was one of several Texas seats heavily redrawn in the mid-decade redistricting push by Republican lawmakers. Cook Political Report now rates TX-35 as an open seat with a Republican lean, listing its partisan voting index as R+4.
But Democrats argue the political environment has shifted since the map was drawn. Republicans designed the district assuming GOP gains among Latino voters and continued strength from Donald Trump’s 2024 coalition. Now, with Trump’s approval weakened ahead of the midterms, Democrats see TX-35 as potentially competitive.
The new 35th District now covers much of south and northeast San Antonio, along with suburbs including Live Oak, Converse and Elmendorf, and parts of Guadalupe, Wilson and Karnes counties.
