--- title: Rep. Gonzales Admits Affair, Drops Reelection Bid description: The Texas lawmaker was dogged by allegations that he had an affair with a former staffer who went on to die by suicide. canonical: https://time.com/7382815/tony-gonzales-texas-congress-reelection-drop-out-primary-affair-staffer/ author: Chad de Guzman article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2026-03-06T05:30:00.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-03-19T11:51:11.048Z article:section: Politics og:title: Rep. Gonzales Admits Affair, Drops Reelection Bid og:description: The Texas lawmaker was dogged by allegations that he had an affair with a former staffer who went on to die by suicide. og:url: https://time.com/7382815/tony-gonzales-texas-congress-reelection-drop-out-primary-affair-staffer/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt6dc99d9961066241/69b048aeafd29a13eb246310/tony-gonzales.jpg?branch=production&width=2400&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: Rep. Tony Gonzales og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Rep. Gonzales Admits Affair, Drops Reelection Bid twitter:description: The Texas lawmaker was dogged by allegations that he had an affair with a former staffer who went on to die by suicide. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt6dc99d9961066241/69b048aeafd29a13eb246310/tony-gonzales.jpg?branch=production&width=2400&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Texas Congressman Tony Gonzales Admits Affair, Drops Reelection Bid  by [Chad de Guzman](https://time.com/author/chad-de-guzman/)  ## Chad de Guzman Reporter Mar 6, 2026 5:30 AM UTC  Rep. Tony Gonzales (R, Texas) does a TV news interview at the U.S. Capitol on Feb. 3, 2026. Rep. Tony Gonzales (R, Texas) does a TV news interview at the U.S. Capitol on Feb. 3, 2026.Bill Clark—CQ Roll Call/AP  by [Chad de Guzman](https://time.com/author/chad-de-guzman/)  ## Chad de Guzman Reporter Mar 6, 2026 5:30 AM UTC Republican Rep. Tony Gonzales of Texas dropped his reelection bid on Thursday, after acknowledging a “lapse in judgment” related to allegations he had an affair with a former staffer who later died by suicide. “After deep reflection and with the support of my loving family, I have decided not to seek reelection while serving out the rest of this Congress with the same commitment I've always had to my district,” Gonzales said in a [statement on X](https://x.com/RepTonyGonzales/status/2029772094481842245). Gonzales was [set to face off against](https://time.com/7381745/texas-gonzales-herrera-house-runoff-primary-results-harassment-affair-allegations/) YouTuber and gun rights activist Brandon Herrera in May in a primary runoff for Texas’ 23rd congressional seat, after the two candidates each fell short of 50% in the Republican primary earlier this week. Gonzales did not address the allegations leveled against him regarding his late former staffer Regina Ann Santos-Aviles in his statement, but he spoke briefly about it on Wednesday in conversation with [conservative radio host Joe Pags](https://youtu.be/tP9nYoGFx4w?t=30). “I made a mistake. I had a lapse in judgment. There was a lack of faith. And I take full responsibility for those actions,” Gonzales said when asked if he had a relationship with “this young lady who was working in your office.” Gonzales added that since the affair, he has “reconciled” with his wife and “asked God to forgive me, which He has.” House Republican leaders had [urged](https://thehill.com/homenews/house/5769266-ethics-investigation-into-gonzales-affair-and-staffer-suicide/) Gonzales on Thursday to abandon his reelection bid following his admission, and the House Ethics Committee [launched an investigation](https://ethics.house.gov/press-releases/statement-of-the-chairman-and-ranking-member-of-the-committee-on-ethics-regarding-representative-tony-gonzales/) into him over potential violations of the code of conduct, which he said he [welcomed](https://www.reuters.com/business/media-telecom/us-house-ethics-panel-probe-sex-allegations-against-texas-republican-gonzales-2026-03-04/). Other Republican lawmakers have called on Gonzales to resign, which he has previously resisted. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/7382815/tony-gonzales-texas-congress-reelection-drop-out-primary-affair-staffer/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/7382815/tony-gonzales-texas-congress-reelection-drop-out-primary-affair-staffer/"},"headline":"Texas Congressman Tony Gonzales Admits Affair, Drops Reelection Bid","datePublished":"2026-03-06T05:30:00.000Z","dateModified":"2026-03-19T11:51:11.048Z","description":"The Texas lawmaker was dogged by allegations that he had an affair with a former staffer who went on to die by suicide.","url":"https://time.com/7382815/tony-gonzales-texas-congress-reelection-drop-out-primary-affair-staffer/","keywords":["republicans","overnight","News Desk"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt6dc99d9961066241/69b048aeafd29a13eb246310/tony-gonzales.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Chad de Guzman","jobTitle":"Reporter","url":"https://time.com/author/chad-de-guzman/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt6dc99d9961066241/69b048aeafd29a13eb246310/tony-gonzales.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Rep. 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