Republicans outraise Democrats in battle for South Texas congressional seats

[TexasTowelie]

by Patrick Svitek, Texas Tribune


Republicans outraised Democrats over the summer in all three congressional races in South Texas that the national parties are contesting, according to new campaign finance reports.

The three GOP nominees hauled in a combined $4.3 million over the past three months, while their Democratic opponents collected $2.4 million together. Two of the Democrats — incumbents Henry Cuellar and Vicente Gonzalez — still ended the period with more cash on hand than their challengers, though Gonzalez had only a slight edge.

But the large GOP fundraising shows how intent Republicans are on taking over the predominantly Hispanic region after President Joe Biden underperformed there in 2020. They are targeting Cuellar’s 28th District, which includes Laredo in a long stretch of the border up through San Antonio; the 15th District, which is an open seat and runs in a thin line from McAllen up to east of San Antonio; and the 34th District in the Rio Grande Valley, where Gonzalez is running for reelection against U.S. Rep. Mayra Flores, R-Los Indios, who captured the seat in a June special election.

Winning the seats could help the GOP retake the U.S. House, but it would also provide a major psychological win for a party intensely focused on border policy and gaining ground with Hispanic voters.

All three Republican nominees raised over $1 million, and Cuellar’s challenger, Cassy Garcia, had the largest haul — $1.7 million. The biggest disparity, however, was in the 34th District, where Flores more than tripled Gonzalez’s fundraising, $1.6 million to $497,000.

Read more: https://www.texastribune.org/2022/10/16/south-texas-GOP-fundraising/

Immigration policy is having an effect in these elections.