Overview
- The three-term Texas Republican said he will finish his current term representing the 23rd District rather than continue his 2026 campaign.
- Brandon Herrera moved to claim the GOP nomination after Gonzales left the May 26 runoff race.
- The House Committee on Ethics established an investigative subcommittee after the Office of Congressional Conduct said there was substantial reason to believe House rules were violated.
- Gonzales acknowledged the affair in a radio interview after months of denials, following reports of 2024 texts with sexually explicit requests to Regina Santos-Aviles, who died by suicide in 2025.
- Top Republicans publicly pressed him to withdraw, and some colleagues floated further actions such as censure or loss of committee assignments as the inquiry proceeds.