A recent injury has forced newly elected U.S. Rep. Monica De La Cruz, R-15, to postpone a tour of the congressional district she will soon represent come Jan. 3, 2023.
In a statement released Monday, De La Cruz’s staff announced that she had broken her left ankle while exercising at a South Texas gym.
“The congresswoman-elect will wear a cast for several weeks as she recovers from her injury,” the statement reads.
“On the advice of her doctor, she will postpone her district tour, which was scheduled to begin this evening,” it further said.
De La Cruz was set to kick off a multi-day tour of U.S. House District 15 — which had been held by U.S. Rep. Vicente Gonzalez until the district maps were redrawn after the 2020 Census — on Monday evening.
She was slated to make an appearance at the Smokin’ Moon BBQ restaurant in Pharr.
On Tuesday, De La Cruz was going to make a slew of stops in the ranchlands of Premont, then north along U.S. Highway 181 with stops in Karnes City and Floresville.
The “meet-and-greet” tour was set to cap off on Wednesday with stops in Seguin and Three Rivers.
De La Cruz “will continue planning her transition from home over the next few days before resuming her previously scheduled in-person meetings later this week,” the news release said.
De La Cruz defeated progressive Democratic candidate Michelle Vallejo for the District 15 seat by nearly 13,000 votes in November.
Prior to the redrawing of the maps, District 15 had favored President Joe Biden by 2 points in 2020, and Gonzalez — who went on to run for District 34 — by 3 points, according to Texas Monthly.
With the win, De La Cruz became the first woman and the first Republican to represent the district, which stretches in a narrow band of counties some have called the “fajita strip” from the Rio Grande Valley, north to parts of San Antonio.
She also became the sole Republican candidate running in the Valley — dubbed the “triple threat” to emerge victorious at the ballot box.
De La Cruz, along with U.S. Rep. Mayra Flores — who won a June special election to fill the unexpired term of former District 34 U.S. Rep. Filemon Vela — and Cassy Garcia, once the deputy state director for U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, gained national attention in the leadup to the November election.
The national GOP saw a chance for a “red tsunami” that would flip the Valley red and end the century-long reign of Democratic candidates here.
Instead, Garcia lost to Cuellar, who on Thursday announced he would serve as chief deputy whip in the upcoming 118th Congress, making him one of the most powerful lawmakers in the House.
Flores, meanwhile, lost her re-election bid for District 34 to Gonzalez.
For all the partisan rhetoric that had imbued campaign ads ahead of Nov. 8, De La Cruz struck a far more conciliatory tone during the victory speech she delivered to a packed house of supporters that night.
“I am ready to roll up my sleeves and work with both parties, because I want to secure the promise of America for the next generation,” De La Cruz said then.
