2022 MIDTERMS
South Texas Battleground
Sharp ideological differences shape south Texas congressional race
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By Darlene McCormick Sanchez onica de l a cruz, the Republican candidate in the redrawn U.S. 15th Congressional District in South Texas, believes that the stark difference between her traditional values and those of her progressive Democratic opponent will be what flips the district to red come November. De La Cruz will face Democrat Michelle Vallejo in a district that’s heavily Hispanic and traditionally votes blue. Both candidates run small businesses in the district, part of which sits along the Mexican border. That’s where the similarities between the two end. De La Cruz, from Edinburg, was raised by a single mother and put herself through the University of Texas at San Antonio. She’s a pro-life candidate who believes that the United States is a country built on faith and family. She wants a return to former President Donald Trump’s border policies to stop illegal immigration and reverse the Democratic policies she attributes to soaring inflation. Vallejo, who’s from Mission, attended Columbia University and says she wants to make South Texas more “equitable.” Her biography states that she comes from a family of farm workers and that she wants to represent the working class. She
“Thousands upon thousands of illegal immigrants are walking through the border. That affects our national security.” Monica De La Cruz, congressional candidate
believes in keeping abortion legal, offering “rights and opportunities” to illegal immigrants, eliminating fossil fuels in favor of “green energy,” and championing LGBT rights. Her platform seeks to create social programs such as “Medicare for All.” “My opponent, Michelle Vallejo, highlighting her radical progressive agenda, will further show the divide between the Democrats and the Republicans,” De La Cruz told Insight. Vallejo, endorsed by progressives such as Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), became her party’s District 15 nominee after defeating moderate Democrat Ruben Ramirez by 35 votes in the primary. Rep. Vicente Gonzalez (D-Texas), a moderate Democrat representing District 15, is switching to run in District 34. The Republican-dominated Texas Legislature redrew the South Texas voter map, moving his McAllen home into District 34 from District 15. De La Cruz did well when she ran against Gonzalez, the incumbent, in 2020 for the District 15 seat, losing by 6,588 votes. In November, Gonzalez will face Rep. Mayra Flores (R-Texas) in District 34—a rare matchup between a sitting lawmaker and a newly elected congresswoman. Flores made history in a special election last month, becoming the first Republican to win the South Texas district in more than 100 years, bolstering the Republican belief that they can flip deep-blue South Texas. Flores is a legal immigrant from Mexico who’s married to a Border Patrol agent.
Less Government Intervention
Republican Monica De La Cruz faces Democrat Michelle Vallejo in a district that’s heavily Hispanic and traditionally votes blue. 26 I N S I G H T July 15–21, 2022
CLOCKWISE FROM TOP L: COURTESY OF MONICA DE LA CRUZ, CHARLOTTE CUTHBERTSON/THE EPOCH TIMES, SERGIO FLORES/GETTY IMAGES
De La Cruz, who has secured endorsements from Trump and Republican House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), said inflation hurts individuals and small businesses and leads to tough choices. The increasing costs have forced small business owners such as herself to lay off workers. Many of the residents in her district are below the median income level, so just buying food and a tank of gas is a struggle. Her opponent’s green energy policies stand to cripple the Texas oil industry, exasperate gas prices, and eliminate jobs, De La Cruz said. District
