Text messages reviewed by a Texas newspaper have reignited a brutal question for voters: what happens to accountability when a member of Congress denies a relationship with a subordinate—until the receipts surface after her death?
Quick Take
- New reporting says a senior district staffer texted a colleague that she had an affair with Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-TX) months before she died by suicide in 2025.
- The San Antonio Express-News report landed the same day early voting began in Gonzales’ contested GOP primary against Brandon Herrera.
- Law enforcement has continued investigating the death and has said there are no indications of foul play, while key details about prior crises remain partly unconfirmed.
- Gonzales has framed the timing as a politically driven smear and says he will stay focused on President Trump’s border priorities.
What the latest reporting claims—and why it matters
San Antonio Express-News reporting published Feb. 18, 2026, says Regina Ann “Regi” Santos-Aviles, a senior district staffer for Rep. Tony Gonzales, acknowledged an affair in text messages the outlet reviewed. According to the timeline presented across outlets, the relationship allegedly began during the 2024 election cycle, while Santos-Aviles had worked in Gonzales’ office since 2021. The central factual development is documentary: texts attributed to Santos-Aviles herself.
Those messages matter because Gonzales previously denied the allegations publicly after initial reporting surfaced in 2024. When a public official’s denials collide with documentation, voters are left weighing credibility and judgment, not just policy positions. The reporting also spotlights the inherent power imbalance in any alleged relationship between a lawmaker and a subordinate employee. Even without a criminal allegation in the available sources, workplace ethics and public trust become unavoidable issues.
A tragedy in Uvalde and what investigators have said
Santos-Aviles, 35, died in September 2025 at her Uvalde home in a death ruled a suicide by self-immolation, according to reporting that cites official determinations. Uvalde police and the Texas Rangers have continued investigating and have said they found no indications of foul play. Several outlets tie the timeline to concerns raised by co-workers about her well-being in mid-2025. The basic facts of her death are widely corroborated; motives and causation are not.
Some of the most emotionally charged elements in the public narrative remain limited by what reporters could verify. One report described an alleged August 2025 incident in which police were called after a reported suicide attempt, but the same coverage noted it was not independently confirmed. That distinction matters for readers trying to separate confirmed facts from secondhand accounts. The available sources also include an attorney for Santos-Aviles’ husband saying he did not believe the affair directly caused her suicide.
Political timing: early voting, a primary challenge, and Trump’s endorsement
The Feb. 18 report hit as early voting started in the Republican primary, with Gonzales facing challenger Brandon Herrera ahead of a March 3, 2026, election date. That timing is driving much of the political temperature around the story, because a late-breaking controversy can reshape turnout and fundraising quickly. President Trump endorsed Gonzales in December 2025, before this latest round of detailed allegations was published, adding another layer of political pressure around how the party responds.
Gonzales responded by praising Santos-Aviles’ public service and accusing opponents of politicizing her memory, while saying he would focus on helping President Trump secure the border and improve Texans’ lives. Herrera, for his part, publicly called for Gonzales’ resignation and alleged ethics violations, including the claim that taxpayer funds were used. In the material provided, those specific funding claims are presented as an accusation by a political opponent, not as an established fact with documented proof.
Ethics, power imbalance, and the standard voters should demand
The Express-News editorial board reportedly withdrew its endorsement of Gonzales, citing deception and the unequal nature of an alleged affair between a member of Congress and a staffer. For conservative voters who value personal responsibility and ordered liberty, that critique lands differently than generic partisan sniping: the issue is whether leaders live by the rules they expect families, churches, and workplaces to enforce. The House sets ethics expectations precisely because abuse of authority corrodes trust.
At the same time, the story is also a reminder that tragedies can be weaponized in campaigns—something voters across the spectrum have grown tired of. The most defensible conclusions, based on the available reporting, are narrow: text messages described by multiple outlets exist; Gonzales previously denied the allegations; law enforcement has not suggested foul play in the death; and both the campaign and media environment are now testing how quickly the party and constituents demand clarity.
For Texas’ 23rd District, the practical question is whether this controversy affects Republican unity in a competitive seat, and whether it distracts from priorities that matter to the Trump-era base—border security, spending restraint, and reversing the cultural excesses of the last decade. If additional documentation emerges, voters can recalibrate. Until then, the public record supports scrutiny of workplace conduct and honesty, without jumping beyond what the evidence in the reporting can actually prove.
Sources:
Report alleges West Texas congressman had affair
Texts Show Aide Admitted To Affair With Lawmaker Prior To Death By Suicide
Report alleges former Tony Gonzales aide who died by suicide had affair with him
Months before her death, Tony Gonzales aide texted about affair with congressman, report says
