By Dave Andrusko
Rep. Henry Cueller, the last pro-life Democrat in the House of Representative, declared victory late last night over Jessica Cisneros in the Democratic primary runoff. Cisneros, backed by EMILY’s List, Planned Parenthood, and NARAL Pro-Choice America, had not conceded as of this morning.
But Cueller tweeted, “The votes are in, the margin will hold. We have won by 177 votes.”
The winner will face pro-life Republican Cassy Garcia, a former staffer for Sen. Ted Cruz, in the November general election.
“I want to thank Texas-28 for your support tonight and choosing me to be your nominee,” Garcia said in a tweet. “We have a lot of work to do, but we will do it together. We don’t know our opponent yet, but we will flip this seat and win in November.”
National Republican Congressional Committee Chairman Tom Emmer tweeted, “Congratulations to Cassy Garcia on her win. Cassy has the message and experience needed to flip this seat red in November, and I look forward to her giving Texas voters the conservative representation they deserve in Washington.”
The story of last night’s runoff battle in Texas’s 28th Congressional District was aptly summarized by the pro-abortion Dallas Morning News: “Nine-term Rep. Henry Cuellar of Laredo was battling for survival Tuesday night in a fierce South Texas congressional race that drew huge attention as a bellwether for the nation’s mood on reproductive rights.”
That’s for sure. According to Acacia Coronado of the Associated Press, “In the closing weeks, abortion rights groups poured money and resources on the ground and across TV in South Texas, where Cuellar has been in office for 17 years and beat Cisneros in the primary two years ago. Progressive leaders including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, of New York, and Sen. Bernie Sanders, of Vermont, have also come to Texas to campaign with Cisneros.”
Cueller’s victory continues to unravel the myth that the Hispanic community is pro-abortion and will always vote for Democrat. “This once Democratic stronghold is now being labeled a ‘toss up’ seat in the November general election, as Republicans turn their efforts toward South Texas domination,” report Abby Livingston and Patrick Svitek.
In a statement issued last night, Rep. Cueller said, “Tonight, the 28th Congressional District spoke, and we witnessed our great Democratic system at work. The results are in, all the votes have been tallied — I am honored to have once again been re-elected as the Democratic Nominee for Congress.”