With no primary opponent, incumbent U.S. Rep. Veronica Escobar sailed into the November General Election, but Republicans will still have a choice to make.
Only one candidate in the Republican primary for Escobar’s District 16 seat in the U.S. House of Representatives broke the 20% mark, leaving the two top finishers to go toe-to-toe in a May 26 runoff.
With 91% of counties reporting on election night, Adam Bauman came out on top with 25% of the vote, followed by Manuel J. Barraza with 17% of the vote.
Barraza was convicted for his conduct as a local judge. He served six years in prison after being convicted of trading sexual acts for favorable rulings.
Little is known about either candidate: Bauman served in the U.S. Navy and worked with the U.S. Border Patrol as a member of the Border Patrol Tactical Team; Barraza is a former El Paso judge and paralegal.
Either candidate, however, will have an uphill battle attempting to unseat Escobar, who nabbed nearly 53,000 votes with no opponent. First elected in 2019, Escobar has become a force in the U.S. House of Representatives and has the connections and resources needed to easily fend off a largely unknown opponent.
With El Paso a steadfastly Democratic city, it’s unlikely that anyone will pose any real threat to Escobar’s reelection.
Gonzales, Herrera headed to a runoff
In the Republican primary for the Texas House District 23 seat, incumbent U.S. Rep. Tony Gonzales, who was rocked by scandal in the final weeks of the primary campaign, still has a fight ahead to maintain his seat in the U.S. House of Representatives.
Gonzales, R-San Antonio, is headed for a runoff with conservative YouTube personality Brandon Herrera, who nearly defeated Gonzales when the two met two years ago. With 97% of counties reporting late on election night, Gonzales held only a slim lead over Herrera, 43% to 42%.
While Gonzales may attempt to paint Herrera as too radical for Congress, his opponent’s strategy will likely lean heavily on the personal tumult surrounding the incumbent. Only weeks before the primary election, allegations surfaced that Gonzales had maintained an extramarital affair with a former staffer who died by self-immolation last year.
Neither candidate could be reached for comment on election night.
The winner of the Republican runoff will face Democrat Katy Padilla Stout, a San Antonio attorney and former public-school teacher, in November.
Is Jasmine Crockett still in office?
After her loss in the Democratic primary for a U.S. Senate seat in Texas, U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett will retain her seat until new members of Congress are sworn in on Jan. 3, 2027.
On the morning after her defeat by state Rep. James Talarico, who will now represent the Democrats in the November General Election, Crockett, D-Dallas, called on Democrats to rally behind Talarico in November.
“This morning, I called James and congratulated him on becoming the Senate nominee,” she said in a post on X the day after the election. “Texas is primed to turn blue and we must remain united because this is bigger than any one person. This is about the future of all 30 million Texans and getting America back on track. With the primary behind us, Democrats must rally around our nominees and win. I’m committed to doing my part and will continue working to elect democrats up and down the ballot.”
Adam Powell covers government and politics for the El Paso Times and can be reached via email at apowell@elpasotimes.com.
This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: El Paso Republicans face runoff for U.S. Rep. Veronica Escobar’s seat
Reporting by Adam Powell, El Paso Times / El Paso Times
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