The numbers are in and incumbent Congressman Henry Cuellar has maintained his victory against Jessica Cisneros, a progressive who tried to unseat him for a second time.
Cisneros had requested a recount following the May 24 Democratic runoff where Cuellar edged by with 281 votes for the nomination in Congressional District 28.
The Texas Democratic Party on Tuesday afternoon released the results of the recount, which resulted in Cisneros losing two votes and Cuellar gaining six for a total of 22,901 to Cisneros’ 22,612.
In a statement, Cuellar said he is proud to be the Democratic nominee.
“As I said on election night, ‘the margin will hold’ — and it has not only held but grown,” Cuellar said. “After counting every vote across the nine counties in the 28th district for a second time I have won this election by 290 votes, and I am proud to be your Democratic nominee for the 28th District of Texas.”
According to the Texas Democratic Party, Cuellar won by 289 votes.
He also thanked his family and supporters, who he said were instrumental to his victory while also thanking election workers.
Cuellar also addressed Cisneros’ supporters, though he does not directly mention Cisneros’ name in his statement.
“To those who did not vote for me, as your Congressman I will continue to work diligently for you in Washington,” Cuellar said. “While we may differ on certain positions, we share a common ground on many issues to improve our communities and strengthen families.”
Cuellar’s statement does not mention his Republican opponent, Cassy Garcia, and the longtime incumbent said he will continue to serve in Congress and fight for the priorities of South Texans, which Cuellar said includes securing the border, lowering taxes, supporting police and Border Patrol and fighting to protect oil and gas jobs.
“I am an American, Texan, then a Democrat — in that order — and I will continue to fight for Texas values and not let coastal elites bring their failed agenda to our communities,” Cuellar said.
Now, Cuellar said, is the time for Democrats to unite and win the general election in November.
In a statement, Texas Democratic Party chairman Gilberto Hinojosa thanked Cisneros for a positive campaign and said she will continue to fight for South Texans as Democrats rally behind Cuellar.
“After a hard-fought primary battle, the voters of South Texas have spoken and they have decided that Henry Cuellar will again represent them in Washington, continuing his work to lead the borderland and stand up for hard-working middle-class families from Laredo to San Antonio,” Hinojosa said. “We’re grateful to Jessica Cisneros for the positive campaign she ran — shining a light on the issues that are really impacting South Texas. We all know she will continue to fight for South Texans as we rally together behind our nominee, Henry Cuellar.”
Cisneros conceded Tuesday, but she called her bid to unseat Cuellar an uphill battle against a slew of entities, including the Democratic Party.
“We were up against a corrupt political machine, Republican-funded Super PACs, the Koch brothers, private prisons, Big Oil, the Chamber of Commerce, dark money groups, Big Pharma, and nearly the entire Democratic Party establishment in Washington — and we still refused to back down,” Cisneros said. “With this close of a margin, it’s clear that without their aggressive interference in the lives of South Texas families, we would have won.”
She also touted how her campaign rejected corporate PAC and lobbyist money while blasting Cuellar’s fundraising.
“Representative Cuellar received financial support from Big Oil corporate PACs, the private prison industry, corporate defense contractors, the Koch network, and anti-choice dark money groups,” she said in the statement. “In the last month of the primary, corporate Super PACs flooded the district with over $3 million in spending in an unsuccessful attempt to prop up Cuellar and attack Cisneros with misinformation and smears.”
Cisneros said in the statement that fear of change and fear of the future is hindering the chance she envisions.
“The biggest thing holding us back from pursuing the change we deserve is their fear. Fear of change, fear of the future,” she said. “But the only way you defeat fear is with courage and determination that in the richest nation in the world, we all deserve to thrive. Change is a process — and through this process, we’re educating our community that we deserve better than the status quo. Better than representatives that won’t fight for our healthcare, our reproductive rights, our union brothers and sisters, and our immigrant friends and families.”
Cisneros’ progressive platform included “Medicare for All, reproductive rights, creating good-paying union jobs through a Green New Deal and standing up to Cuellar’s long history of corruption and attacks on abortion rights.”
She also thanked her staff, volunteers and all the organizations and working families who helped in what Cisneros called an “underdog race.”
“We’re going to keep fighting, keep organizing. And make sure we are shining a spotlight on the injustices in our community,” Cisneros said. “We’re going to keep fighting to create a more progressive and accountable Democratic Party this year and work to turn Texas blue in November.”
