Republican Rep. Tony Gonzales of Texas ended his re-election campaign Thursday night, bowing to mounting pressure from his own party’s leadership just one day after finally admitting to an affair with a staff member who later died by suicide.
“After deep reflection and with the support of my loving family, I have decided not to seek re-election,” Gonzales said in a statement posted to X, vowing to serve out the remainder of his term.
The decision came hours after House Speaker Mike Johnson and the top three Republican leaders issued an extraordinary joint statement calling on Gonzales to withdraw from his race. The move stunned Capitol Hill, where GOP leaders are clinging to a razor-thin majority that leaves almost no room for error.
“We have encouraged him to address these very serious allegations directly with his constituents and his colleagues,” Johnson, Majority Leader Steve Scalise, Whip Tom Emmer, and GOP Conference Chairwoman Lisa McClain said in their statement. “In the meantime, Leadership has asked Congressman Gonzales to withdraw from his race for reelection”.
The Affair
On Wednesday, hours after the House Ethics Committee announced an investigation and the same day he was forced into a May runoff, Gonzales finally acknowledged what he had denied for months.
“I made a mistake and I had a lapse in judgment, and there was a lack of faith, and I take full responsibility for those actions,” the married father of six told conservative podcaster Joe “Pags” Pagliarulo.
The relationship was with Regina Santos-Aviles, his regional district director in Uvalde, Texas. She died in September 2025 after setting herself on fire near her home. The medical examiner ruled her death a suicide.
Gonzales insisted Santos-Aviles’ death had nothing to do with their relationship, saying she was “thriving” at work and that he was “shocked just as much as everyone else”.
The Texts
The scandal erupted after Santos-Aviles’ widower shared explicit text messages with multiple news outlets. In May 2024 exchanges, Gonzales repeatedly asked the aide to send him a “sexy pic” and inquired about her sexual preferences.
Santos-Aviles pushed back, telling her boss, “This is going too far, boss.” But she also appeared to engage in flirtation, asking at one point: “How long have you thought I was this hot?”
The following month, her husband Adrian Aviles sent a text from her phone to Gonzales and other staffers, announcing he was filing for divorce after discovering “she’s been having an affair on me with your boss Tony Gonzales for some time now”.
A lawyer for Aviles told CBS that Santos-Aviles’ mental health “sharply declined” following the end of the relationship, exacerbated by “workplace harassment after the discovery of the affair”.
The Investigation
The House Ethics Committee announced its probe Wednesday, launching an investigative subcommittee to determine whether Gonzales “engaged in sexual misconduct” toward an employee or “discriminated unfairly by dispensing special favors or privileges”.
Under House rules, lawmakers are not permitted to engage in sexual relationships with staff.
Gonzales initially said he looked forward to the investigation and claimed there was “a whole lot more to the story that isn’t out there”. But his defiance quickly crumbled under the weight of leadership’s intervention.
The Political Fallout
The congressman, now in his third term, had finished second in Tuesday’s primary, forcing a May runoff against conservative activist and YouTube gun-rights influencer Brandon Herrera. He had vowed just hours earlier to win that race.
But pressure mounted rapidly. Several Republicans had already called on him to resign, including Reps. Lauren Boebert, Nancy Mace, and Anna Paulina Luna. Luna introduced resolutions to strip Gonzales of his committee assignments and censure him.
House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries went further, saying he would support expelling Gonzales from the House entirely — a rare step requiring a two-thirds vote.
GOP leaders stopped short of calling for Gonzales’ immediate resignation, likely reflecting their precarious majority. But they urged the Ethics Committee to “act expeditiously”.
Herrera thanked Johnson and House leadership after their statement, saying he looked forward to representing the district “the way the people of West Texas have always deserved”.
The Aftermath
Gonzales, a 20-year Navy veteran who served in Iraq and Afghanistan, first won his seat in 2020. His district along the U.S.-Mexico border is heavily Republican.
In his exit statement, Gonzales framed his decision as continuing a lifetime of service.
“At 18, I swore an oath to defend our nation against all enemies, foreign and domestic,” he said. “During my 20 years in the military and three terms in Congress, I have fought for that cause with absolute dedication to the country that I love”.
“God has a plan for all of us,” he added.
For the family of Regina Santos-Aviles, the political drama offers no comfort. She died seven months ago. Her husband’s lawyer said her mental health “sharply declined” after the affair and its aftermath.
Gonzales maintained until the end: “I had absolutely nothing to do with her tragic passing”.
