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Harlingen businessman Luis Villarreal Jr. defeated State Board of Education member Ruben Cortez in the Democratic primary runoff election Tuesday for the new State House of Representatives District 37 seat.
In Cameron County, Villarreal won 3,041 votes, or 52 percent, while Cortez drew 2,745 votes with 100 percent of precincts reporting at 9:30 p.m.
Meanwhile, Villarreal was drawing 2,567 votes to Cortez’s 2,316 votes with 47 percent of polling locations reporting, according to the Texas Secretary of State’s Office.
Now, Villarreal, former state Sen. Eddie Lucio Jr.’s director of administration, faces Republican Janie Lopez, a San Benito school board member, in November’s general election.
“I’m very humbled,” he said surrounded by supporters at Harlingen’s old downtown post office, which he renovated. “It’s time to hear the people. I redeveloped my platform based on the feedback as I went door to door. It’s a new generation. It’s time for a change.”
Villarreal said he turned to door-to-door campaigning for the runoff, focusing on Harlingen, home of about 58 percent of the district’s voters.
“We went traditionally door-to-door,” he said. “I block-walked 2,000 homes specifically in Harlingen, Primera, Combes, Los Fresnos and San Benito.”
Villarreal’s door-to-door campaigning helped him pick up votes since the three-man Democratic primary election.
In the March 1 primary, Cortez won 3,348 votes while Villarreal drew 3,070, with Harlingen City Commissioner Frank Puente Jr., falling short of the runoff with 1,685 votes.
During his campaign, Villarreal vowed to work to bring high-paying jobs to the area while focusing on making healthcare affordable.
“We need innovative legislation that will help create new high-paying jobs that will make it easier for members of our community to live, work, and provide for their families,” he states on his website. “This means every person deserves access to healthcare, a living wage, a good education, and technical job training. This means people deserve access to affordable prescription drugs and health insurance, no matter their background. I will work to reduce prescription drug prices, expand Medicaid, prevent medical debt and eliminate barriers restricting access to care.”
The district’s boundaries were redrawn after the 2020 Census, making Harlingen its base.
The new Texas House District 37 includes all of Willacy County including the cities of Raymondville, Lyford, and San Perlita and much of Cameron County, including the cities of Bayview, Combes, Harlingen, Indian Lake, Laguna Vista, Los Fresnos, Palm Valley, Port Isabel, Primera, Rancho Viejo, Rangerville, Rio Hondo, South Padre Island and parts of Brownsville, La Feria, and San Benito.
