U.S. REP GONZALEZ MAKES NOISES: SWITCHING DISTRICTS?

"Democratic Rep. Vicente Gonzalez is strongly considering vacating his newly competitive swing district in favor of a safe blue seat next door. Gonzalez, a three-term incumbent representing the Rio Grande Valley, said Friday that he will likely run in the 34th District of retiring Rep. Filemon Vela, who says he would support his colleague making the switch." Politico

Special to El Rrun-Rrun

Just days after Texas Republicans unveiled a new congressional proposal that would transform his once safe U.S. Rep. District 15 seat into a slighter redder one, McAllen-based Rep. Vicente Gonzalez is floating balloons suggesting he might switch to Brownsville-based District 34 now that incumbent Rep. Filemon Vela has announced he will not run for reelection. 

This has prompted charges of carpetbagging from some Brownsville political operatives, saying that the McAllen-based U.S. Rep. has no name recognition in neighboring District 34. And others say that Gonzalez appears timid to face a tougher challenge in his district.

Texas Republicans were even more gleeful, posting tweets and social media messages suggesting "Chente" was showing a streak of yellow and running for a district in Guatemala after seeing the "Red TSUNAMI coming from District 34."

Some local Democratic Party operatives in Cameron County report they have received feelers from the Gonzalez camp who point to his burgeoning war chest they say will be hard for any other candidate to beat.

A press release by the Vicente Gonzalez for Congress campaign announced Gonzalez raised more than $700,000 in the third quarter of 2021, bringing the campaign’s war chest to over $2 million.

"The third quarter total demonstrates the strong momentum behind Gonzalez’s re-election," the release states.

But some discerning critics say that the McAllen U.S. Rep.'s $700,000 third-quarter take came from out of state – namely the Democratic National Committee – after they learned that District 15, like a growing number of districts in South Texas, was turning red.

But is it, really? Or is Gonzalez prematurely giving up in the face of numbers from the newly-released redistricting that still favor a Democratic candidate in all three congressional districts?

"Gonzalez might want to reconsider this move," said an old-time Yellow Dog Democrat from Cameron County. "Nobody likes a correlon, and on top of that, someone who is afraid of a Republican woman."

Politico reported that "House Republicans, who have identified Gonzalez’s current McAllen-based district as their top pickup opportunity in Texas, will welcome the news that Democrats are losing the power of incumbency in a tough battleground.

Gonzalez, who was first elected in 2016, said that he has over $2 million in his campaign account to use in a primary for the Vela's seat. He also said if he changed districts he would "make certain that we have another candidate" that could keep his 15th District in Democratic hands.

Even before the GOP-controlled redistricting began, Gonzalez was likely to have a tough reelection. His current district, which includes McAllen and stretches north toward San Antonio, took a hard swing to the right last year.

Hillary Clinton won the seat by 17 points in 2016; but Joe Biden won it by just 2 points four years later. Meanwhile, Gonzalez saw his victory margin shrink to 3 points in 2020 against a opponent who spent less than $300,000. 

That candidate, Monica De La Cruz-Hernandez, is running again this cycle."