A south Texas congressional district will be represented by a Republican for the first time following a special election on Tuesday.
Flores, reportedly the first Latina Republican to serve Texas in Congress, is expected to face a more challenging race in November, however.
During November’s general election, voters will determine who will serve as the district’s permanent congressional representative starting in 2022.
Gonzalez now serves as the representative for a neighboring congressional district. He is reportedly expected to beat Flores in the election.
Flores’s victory comes as Republicans ramp up efforts to court Latino voters and amid a slew of polls and elections showing a broader shift among Latino voters away from the Democrats.
“If you look at things like the Texas local elections, the New Jersey elections, Nassau County elections, the Virginia elections,
ndeed, Flores touted her conservative bona fides on the campaign trail. She invoked elements of Trump’s rhetoric,
Flores, a respiratory care worker, was born in Mexico.
She has made clear that her immigration to the US at age six was done “legally” and “with the help of her father … gave her family the biggest gift, the gift of becoming a proud, naturalized American citizen”.
Flores has also voiced alignment with “America First”, an exceptionalist rightwing clarion call to those who feel neglected by politicians.
“They do nothing to earn our vote or our support,” Flores also said on her campaign site.