Goliath fight, with himself playing David.ĭespite their downplaying of the stakes, national Democrats ended up spending a little on the race once early voting got underway. Vastly outspent by Flores, Sanchez repeatedly compared the special election to a David vs. The dynamic put Democrats into an unusual underdog position in a region of the state they have long dominated. Flores and her allies spent over $1 million on TV ads in the special election, while national Democrats largely stayed away, arguing it was not worth it to save a seat that will be up again in November - and under new, more favorable boundaries. Republicans have been eager to flip the seat as part of their new offensive in South Texas after Biden’s underperformance throughout the predominantly Hispanic region in the 2020 election. But redistricting made the district more friendly to Democrats in November, when the Democratic nominee is U.S. The special election was unique in that it was held under the previous lines of the 34th District, which President Joe Biden won by only 4 percentage points. Filemon Vela, D-Brownsville, who resigned in March to work for the lobbying firm Akin Gump. The special election was called to finish the term of former U.S. “Too many factors were against us, including little to no support from the National Democratic Party and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.” “Based on the results, we came up short tonight despite being outspent by millions of dollars from out of state interests and the entire Republican machine,” he said. They had argued the race was not worth the investment. Sanchez conceded in a statement that pointed the finger at national Democrats for not doing enough to defend the seat. “I will show you what real representation looks like. “For over 100 years, we have been taken for granted,” she said at her election night party in San Benito. Speaking a little after 9:30 p.m., Flores declared victory and said her campaign “took no one for granted.” Sanchez is a Harlingen lawyer and former Cameron County commissioner, while Flores, a respiratory therapist, is the Republican nominee for the seat in November. There were two other, lesser-known candidates - Democrat Rene Coronado and Republican Juana “Janie” Cantu-Cabrera - in the race. It was not immediately clear how Vela’s seat would be filled until the next Congress, but in one scenario, Gonzelez could resign from his district in south-central Texas to run in a special election, setting up another special election in the 15th District.With all precincts reporting Tuesday night, Flores had 50.98% of the vote and Sanchez had 43.33%. Like all departing House members, Vela will be subject to a one-year ban on lobbying the legislative branch, though he may still provide some level of strategic guidance. Vela also did not respond to a request for comment.Īkin Gump was the second biggest federal lobbying practice in 2021, according to public Lobbying Disclosure Act filings, disclosing $53.4 million from such clients as Amazon, Gila River Indian Community, Oneida Indian Nation, Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America and the U.S. "We do not have any comment on Congressman Filemon Vela or his plans after retirement while he is still serving in Congress," said Akin Gump spokeswoman Sarah Richmond in an email. But he would have carried it by 16 points under the new congressional map, according to Inside Elections. Biden carried the district by 4 points, according to a data analysis by Daily Kos Elections. He won his 2020 election by 13 points, down from a 20-point victory in 2018. Vela, 58, is a vice chair of the Democratic National Committee whose wife, Rose Vela, was named by President Joe Biden to serve as director of the Commission on White House Fellowships.įilemon Vela, who is in his fifth term, had been floated as a potential nominee for Biden’s Cabinet. Vela informed the House Ethics Committee in January that he would recuse himself from any matter involving Akin Gump “as a result of my negotiation or agreement regarding future employment or compensation,” according to a document filed with the committee and reported by Forbes. Gonzales rates the 34th District race Solid Democratic. Vicente Gonzalez, who represents the 15th District, is running for the seat. Vela, who represents Texas’ 34th District along the Mexican border, announced last year that he would not seek reelection. He confirmed the report with the Texas Tribune, according to reporter Abby Livingston. Vela’s plans were first reported in a Tweet Thursday morning by Punchbowl News editor Heather Caygle. Filemon Vela of Texas reportedly plans to resign from Congress in the coming weeks to take a post at the Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld lobbying firm.
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