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Michelle Vallejo, Democrat candidate for U.S House District 15, center, walks from a polling place at the Lark Community Center after voting during early voting on Monday, May 16, 2022, in McAllen. (Joel Martinez | [email protected])

McALLEN — Among the voters who turned out to cast a ballot on the first day of early voting in the primary runoff elections was candidate Michelle Vallejo who is running to represent Texas’ 15th Congressional District against Ruben Ramirez.

Vallejo spoke with reporters outside the Lark Community Center before casting her vote in the runoff election and urging others to do the same.

“Right now, our message is very clear: come out to vote,” Vallejo said. “A lot of people are confused about who’s on the ballot, what election this is, so we are spreading that message on every platform onto everyone we talk to.”

A total of 1,405 people voted in person in the Democratic primary runoff on the first day of early voting, while 1,742 mail-in ballots were counted for the day, according figures from the Hidalgo County elections department.

In the Republican primary runoff, 253 people voted in person, while 140 mail-in ballots were submitted.

Vallejo had just returned from visiting with voters in the northern and central part of the district by the time early voting had commenced and now plans to focus on Hidalgo County.

“Throughout this part of early (voting), we are focusing on staying in Hidalgo County, visiting a few of the polling sites,” she said. “We have some volunteers at our camps and we’ll be making sure everyone has every resource they need, and if there’s any questions or concerns, we’re going to be ready to answer.”

Vallejo, a small business owner, is running on a progressive platform for Democratic nomination for District 15 against Ramirez, an attorney, Army veteran, and a moderate.

The two were the top vote-getters in the March primary election from a field of six candidates. Ramirez received the most with 28% of the votes, while Vallejo received 20%.

A polling place at the Lark Community Center during early voting on Monday, May 16, 2022, in McAllen. (Joel Martinez | [email protected])

The race is a closely watched one due to its vulnerability as a result of redistricting. The redrawn maps made District 15 friendlier to Republicans who are hoping to flip the district in November.

The new district boundaries also prompted incumbent U.S. Rep. Vicente Gonzalez to seek reelection in neighboring District 34, a safer district for Democrats.

Monica De La Cruz, who won the Republican nomination in March for the District 15 race, also ran against Gonzalez in 2020 and came close to defeating him with more than 49% of the votes.

With the choice to pit either Vallejo or Ramírez against De La Cruz, Ramirez is campaigning on the message that he is the only candidate that can gain enough bipartisan support to keep District 15 in the Democrats’ column.

However, Vallejo has said she’s confident that she’ll be able to gain support across the aisle in the district through shared values.

But as the head-to-head between Vallejo and Ramirez has drawn closer, both of their campaigns have come under scrutiny.

In April, a Ramirez supporter filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission against LUPE Votes, the political arm of La Union del Pueblo Entero that is backing Vallejo. The complaint accuses LUPE Votes of violating election law by failing to report spending in a timely manner and perceived coordination with Vallejo’s campaign, according to a report by the Texas Tribune.

Then earlier this month, a politiquero who worked for the Ramirez campaign — as well as three other local politicians — was indicted on a bribery charge that stemmed from allegations that he participated in a kickback scheme with two former elected officials from the city of Edinburg and a business owner.

Ramirez’s campaign stated they had severed their relationship with the politiquero, Miguel A. Garza.

Early voting for the runoff will continue through Friday and election day is Tuesday, May 24.