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U.S. Rep. Monica De La Cruz defeated Democrat Michelle Vallejo on Tuesday, according to The Associated Press, securing a second term representing Texas’ 15th Congressional District and maintaining GOP control of a key seat anchored in the traditionally Democratic Rio Grande Valley.
The contest was a rematch from two years ago, when De La Cruz easily captured the district after it had been redrawn the previous year to favor Republicans. This time, national Democrats devoted more attention and resources to the race. But in the end, De La Cruz still easily outspent Vallejo and pulled off a win with her platform focused on securing the border, reducing inflation and protecting energy jobs.
“In 2022, we made history, and tonight’s outcome confirms that the change we brought to this community is here to stay,” De La Cruz said.
She added that South Texas “deserves more than benchwarmers in Washington” and promised that she was “just getting started” in Congress.
De La Cruz fended off attack ads claiming she would jeopardize Medicare and Social Security based on her proximity to efforts supported by other Republicans — a charge she hotly disputed. Vallejo also took aim at De La Cruz over her support for Texas’ abortion ban, as Democrats hoped to seize on backlash sparked by high-profile cases of women leaving the state to receive medical care for life-threatening pregnancy complications.
De La Cruz largely avoided the issue, removing a “Pro-Life” section from her campaign website’s issues page, though she acknowledged she supports “exceptions for women facing heartbreaking circumstances.”
The district is anchored in Hidalgo County and its biggest city, McAllen, along the U.S.-Mexico border. It runs through rural South Texas up to Guadalupe County east of San Antonio.
As was the case in 2022, Republicans in Texas and Washington, D.C., saw the race as an important benchmark in their efforts to continue gaining ground among Latino voters and cutting into Democrats’ hold on South Texas, a region they had long dominated until recent cycles.
GOP House Speaker Mike Johnson traveled to the district to campaign with De La Cruz, and she landed high-profile speaking slots this year, delivering the Spanish-language response to President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address and speaking at the Republican National Convention.
Meanwhile, Democrats hoped to reassert themselves in South Texas by reclaiming Texas’ 15th District — though they have also noted that Republicans gained the upper hand by redrawing the district to fold in more conservative areas near San Antonio, hundreds of miles and several counties away from the border.
Still, De La Cruz had made inroads in the Democratic stronghold of Hidalgo County, where most of the district lives. She lost the county by about 13 points in 2022 after losing it by more than 20 points the cycle before, when she narrowly failed to unseat the Democratic incumbent at the time, Vicente Gonzalez. This time, Vallejo led in Hidalgo County by just 4 percentage points through early voting — reflecting a major shift to the right throughout South Texas.
After GOP state lawmakers redrew the district so that former President Donald Trump would have carried it by 3 percentage points in 2020, Gonzalez shifted to run in a neighboring district, leading to an open 2022 race in which De La Cruz defeated Vallejo by an 8.5-point margin.
Undeterred, Vallejo saw a path to bring the seat back under Democratic control this cycle, starting with her newfound support from national Democrats who had declined to seriously invest in the race two years ago. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee put the district on its early target list and gave Vallejo mentorship and resources through its Red to Blue program for candidates it deems competitive. And House Majority PAC, a super PAC connected to House Democratic leadership, ran ads supporting Vallejo in English and Spanish as part of a $2 million ad reservation in South Texas — a sharp contrast to when the group pulled its reservations from Vallejo’s race in 2022.
Additionally, Vallejo moderated her message after embracing a more overtly progressive set of issues last cycle, including the single-payer health care system known as Medicare for All. She dropped that from her platform this time around and ran an ad that showed her standing shoulder to shoulder with law enforcement officials while vowing to “get serious” about fixing “chaos at the border” — sparking backlash from progressive supporters who said they felt betrayed by her shifting posture on immigration.
Voting FAQ: 2024 Elections
When is the next election? What dates do I need to know?
Election Day for the general election is November 5, and early voting will run from Oct. 21 to Nov. 1. The deadline to register to vote and/or change your voter registration address is Oct. 7. Applications to vote by mail must be received by your county of residence – not postmarked – by Oct. 25.
What’s on the ballot for the general election?
In addition to the president, eligible Texans have the opportunity to cast their ballots for many Texas officials running for office at the federal, state and local levels.
This includes representatives in the U.S. and Texas houses and the following elected offices:
-1 U.S Senator (Ted Cruz)
– 1 of 3 Railroad Commissioners
– 15 State Senators
– 7 State Board of Education members
– 3 members of the Texas Supreme Court
– 3 members of the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals
– 5 Chief Justices and various justices for Texas Courts of Appeals
Lower-level judges and local county offices will also appear on the ballot:
– Various district judges, including on criminal and family courts
– County Courts at Law
– Justices of the Peace
– District Attorneys
– County Attorneys
– Sheriffs
– Constables
– Tax Assessor-Collectors
How do I make sure I’m registered to vote?
You can check to see if you’re registered and verify your information through the Texas Secretary of State’s website. You’ll need one of the following three combinations to log in: Your Texas driver’s license number and date of birth. Your first and last names, date of birth and county you reside in. Your date of birth and Voter Unique Identifier, which appears on your voter registration certificate.
What if I missed the voter registration deadline?
You must be registered to vote in a Texas county by Oct. 7 to vote in the Nov. 5 presidential election. You can still register for other elections.
If you’re registered but didn’t update your address by the deadline, you may still be able to vote at your previous voting location or on a limited ballot. (Voters are typically assigned precincts based on where they live. In most major counties, voters can vote anywhere on Election Day, but some counties require you vote within your precinct. If that is the case, you may have to return to your previous precinct. See which counties allow countywide Election Day voting here. You can usually find your precinct listed on your voter registration certificate or on when checking your registration online.)
If you moved from one county to another, you may be able to vote on a ballot limited to the elections you would qualify to vote in at both locations, such as statewide races. However, limited ballots are only available during early voting. Find your county election official here and contact them to ask about or request a limited ballot.
What can I do if I have questions about voting?
You can contact your county elections official or call the Texas Secretary of State’s helpline at 1-800-252-VOTE (8683). A coalition of voting rights groups is also helping voters navigate election concerns through the 866-OUR-VOTE (687-8683) voter-protection helpline. The coalition also has hotlines available for voters who speaker other languages or have accessibility needs.
For help in Spanish, call 888-VE-Y-VOTA or 888-839-8682.
For help in Asian languages, call 888-API-VOTE or 888-274-8683.
For help in Arabic, call 888-YALLA-US or 888-925-5287.
For help in American Sign Language through a video, call 301-818-VOTE or 301-818-8683.
For help from Disability Rights Texas, call 888-796-VOTE or 888-796-8683.
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