Rep. Tony Gonzales
Just after midnight on May 9, 2024, U.S. Rep. Tony Gonzales begged an employee, Regina Santos-Aviles, to send him a “sexy pic.” When she pushed back, saying the conversation had gone too far, the married San Antonio Republican persisted, saying he was “just such a visual person.”
Santos-Aviles, Gonzales’ district director in Uvalde, died in September 2025 after lighting herself on fire. Her husband, Adrian Aviles, shared these text messages with The Texas Tribune on Monday as evidence of an affair between the congressman and his staffer. Aviles told the San Antonio Express-News, which published the text messages first, that the relationship and the professional ostracization his wife faced after it was discovered led her to become despondent before her death.
Gonzales did not respond to a request for comment. He said in November that rumors of an affair between him and Santos-Aviles were “completely untruthful.” But as more evidence has emerged over the last week, he has sidestepped direct denials, instead accusing Aviles of trying to blackmail him and blaming his opponent in next week’s primary, Brandon Herrera, for politicizing the issue.
Gonzales has also called for the full police report related to Santos-Aviles’ death to be released; Uvalde officials provided the report to The Texas Tribune on Monday.
[…]
Several lawmakers condemned Gonzales after the text messages were reported. Rep. Brandon Gill, R-Flower Mound, called for him to drop his reelection bid, and Rep. Chip Roy, an Austin Republican who supported Herrera in 2024, voiced renewed support for him in next week’s rematch.
“Brandon should have been elected last cycle, and he should be elected this cycle,” Roy said on social media. “We need conservative warriors in Congress representing the values of Texans. The stakes are too high.”
U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colorado, called on Gonzales to resign, and GOP Rep. Anna Paulina Luna of Florida called on Gonzales’ colleagues from Texas to speak out.
“The entire Texas delegation, as well as every single other Member of Congress, should be condemning a sitting Member of Congress asking for explicit photos of their staff,” Luna said in a social media post. “As a woman, this is really disgusting to see. Not to mention, it brings dishonor on the House of Representatives.”
See here for some background. The details, both of the text messages (which you can see here) and of the police report, are upsetting, so click and read carefully. I’m not going to weigh in on a Republican primary – Rep. Gonzales’ behavior here is atrocious and should bring about serious consequences, but it’s not like there’s a good alternative to him in that race – but I am grimly amused to see that he has somehow managed to cross a line his fellow Republicans cannot abide. I mean, Donald Trump is still their President, and yet here they are calling for Gonzales’ resignation. I’m not saying they’re wrong to do so, I just don’t know how they square that particular circle. TPM, the Current, and Daily Kos have more.
Didn’t he vote for increased gun control a few years ago (see: Uvalde)? If so, that there is your corner cutter. They conveniently get to be aghast at his behavior when really they want any reason to get him out.
Looks like the only way the GOP breaks with one of their own is for a perceived deficit in trump ass-kissing.