BROWNSVILLE, Texas — Science teacher Jorge Jasso takes pride in his Mexican roots. But, he also says, “I’m an American first” who wants to see elected officials put the needs of people in this country before immigrants.
His sentiment would seem to be an opening for Republicans who are waging an expensive battle to upend the political landscape in South Texas, an overwhelmingly Hispanic region where the GOP has expanded its share of Latino support since 2020 and where three Republican Latina congressional candidates have Democrats on edge heading into the midterm elections next month.
But instead, Jasso, 42, is volunteering for the first time in an election as part of Democrats’ ground game in pushing back against the GOP deluge.
Things are about to pick up even more with a visit Saturday to southeast Texas by former President Donald Trump. Early voting in the Nov. 8 election starts Monday in Texas, where Latinos now outnumber whites.
Jasso is helping the Texas American Federation of Teachers, which has endorsed Democrats in most races on the ballot and has teamed up with other groups to mobilize voters.
Jasso said he doesn’t agree with all of Texas AFT’s positions, but he’s decided that Rep. Vicente González, the Democrat running in Texas’ 34th Congressional District, which includes Brownsville, deserves his support, along with other Democrats.
“I agree with most of his policies,” he said of González. “Now do I agree with him 100 percent? Of course not, but is he willing to talk? Yes, I get a feeling he is open to dialogue.”
As for González’s Republican opponent, Rep. Mayra Flores, Jasso said that “there’s no room for dialogue, and that’s huge for me.”
Because of redistricting, two incumbents, González and Flores, are battling it out in a district where 88.5% of eligible voters are Hispanic and that is considered favorable to Democrats. But the race has been tagged a toss-up by political prognosticators, as Flores has waged an aggressive and well-funded campaign.
Flores made history as the first Republican Latina elected from the region and the first Mexican-born House member when she won a June special election. (The Democratic incumbent, Filemón Vela, resigned in March.)
After Flores canceled her participation in a debate on Oct, 19, González held a news conference and sat at a table with an empty chair and piece of paper with her name on it.
“My opponent didn’t show up today because she can’t defend her radical, right-wing Trump votes that she’s taken in the United States Congress,” Gonzalez said.
Reliably Democratic — and now a toss-up
The wife of a Border Patrol agent, Flores has appealed to voters with a message that family, God and country are Republican values that haven’t been represented by the Democratic Party. It’s reminiscent of the Ronald Reagan-era GOP message that suggested Hispanics didn’t know they were Republicans.
Flores, through her campaign manager, Dan Bucheli, declined requests for an interview, citing her schedule and commitments.
González, a three-term congressman who changed districts to run in the 34th, promoted the work he’s done in the region to bring infrastructure investment for roads, bridges and a drainage system to keep residents safe during hurricane season.
“For the last six years and the last three terms in the United States Congress, I brought over $6 billion of resources right here to South Texas, infrastructure resources,” he said.
He said while the GOP may want to take credit for being better on the economy, he reminds voters that the…
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